Tiger Woods is currently uncertain about his return timeline. But he hasn’t stopped trying to change the dynamics of golf for good. While it is no new information that Woods hosts golf tournaments of his own, his recent ventures have been quite innovative. Trying to blend technology with golf, the US golfing legend started the TGL. And now, as he has turned his attention towards the women’s game, the 50-year-old has inspired an LPGA star to come out of retirement.

“JUST IN: @TGL announces @MichelleWieWest is coming out of retirement to be among the players in WTGL. Wie West, who last played competitively at the 2023 U.S. Women’s Open, is also an investor in @WeAreLAGC. WTGL, in partnership with the @LPGA, will debut in Winter 2026-27,” read a recent update from Jeff Eisenband on X, who shared the news after the official X handle of TGL dropped it. 

Michelle Wie West will be the latest addition to the long list of top LPGA players who have confirmed their allegiance towards the tournament. Previously, the likes of Jeenon Thitikul, Charley Hull, and Lydia Ko, too, signed up and expressed excitement on being associated with the league. However, Wie West’s signing is very special. 

She is the only player from the now confirmed list of eight golfers who has already retired. Wie West retired back in 2023, following a stupendous career. The US LPGA star was a 5x LPGA Tour winner, including the 2014 US Women’s Open. She has also represented the United States at the Solheim Cup on five different occasions. Surely, Wie West would hope to bring in all of her experience and put up a strong performance in the upcoming WTGL. 

Following the announcement, the LPGA legend expressed her excitement by saying how big a TGL fan she was. Getting the opportunity to step onto the greens after her retirement once again, Wie West described the initiative as a “powerful platform for women’s golf.” 

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And she did not stop there. Amazed at the job Woods has been doing, the LPGA star pointed out, “I’m passionate about growing the game, and TGL has proved how new formats through the lens of innovation and creativity can bring golf to a broader audience. The team aspect, matched with the unique environment at SoFi Center, is something I want to be part of, and it’s going to be incredibly fun to challenge myself, this time alongside teammates, to compete against the best in the world.”

Following two seasons of high-level action with the TGL, Woods and TMRW Sports are confident about the WTGL turning out to be a massive hit, too. Scheduled to kickstart in the winter of 2026-27, the event will take place at a custom-built SoFi Center in Palm Beach. 

Meanwhile, with a lot of positives being thrown around the WTGL’s launch, golfing fans are confused as to why Nelly Korda had not signed up yet. But the fans had their questions answered by none other than Korda herself. 

Nelly Korda highlights equal pay vision missed in WTGL rollout

While the likes of Charley Hull, Lydia Ko, Rose Zhang, Jeeno Thitikul, and Lexi Thompson signed up for the women’s tech league, one name still remains undecided. Nelly Korda seemingly is not satisfied with the idea of the WTGL. More so because she felt that Woods’ TMRW Sports failed to fully capitalize on the opportunity presented by TGL. 

Korda addressed her confusion and stated, “I have mixed feelings on it if I’m being very honest, and I’m surprised no other girls have, or no one’s really spoken out about it.”

Further explaining her stance, she shared, “I think it’s a huge and unbelievable miss that we’re not playing alongside the men. There’s no greater way to grow the game, and it would have been revolutionary. It would have been the first time, I think, that men and women are on the same playing field, playing for the same exact amount of money. But I also think it’s great that we are getting this opportunity, so that’s my mixed feelings.”

Korda hinted at how, if TGL had started a joint venture with WTGL, they could have accessed one of the richest per-event payout systems in golf. But WTGL is getting launched independently. And its financial framework and earning potential are still to be defined.