What a difference a year makes.
After going the entirety of the first season of TGL without a victory, Boston Common Golf is now 2-0 after an utterly dominant performance against The Bay Golf Club.
And they’re showing no signs of slowing down.
Boston Common remains undefeated on the season after a 9-1 drumming of The Bay Monday night, with Michael Thorbjornsen — who is once again playing as a fill-in for Boston — picking up where he left off in his season opener and the star of the show.
“I'm just having a lot of fun,” Thorbjornsen said. “Not really thinking too much about whether a hole is worth two points or if we need to make it or whatnot. I'm reading the putt the best that I can, trying to put good speed on it, and if it goes in, it goes in; if it doesn't, it doesn't. I'm just trying to have fun out here and play some good golf.”
Boston Common, after two early-season victories, now sits first overall in TGL after finishing last in season one. Boston Common has spectacularly outscored its opponents 16-6 already this season and, without question, has become TGL’s top squad.
Boston Common notched the first point of the night before it was quickly tie through two – with The Bay getting a point right back. It was all Boston for the balance of the evening, however, with the team leading 5-1 heading into singles.
Thorbjornsen, who is from Massachusetts, nailed a 14-foot birdie on No. 7 to give Boston Common a 4-1 lead. With the hammer on play on the next hole, Thorbjornsen then made a six-footer to tie the hole and avoid a two-point swing.
After winning the opening hole, Boston Common essentially played mistake-free golf the rest of the way. Rory McIlroy, who played back-to-back weeks in Dubai on the DP World Tour and likely just got back to south Florida on Sunday, helped push the Boston Common squad to the winner’s circle after defeating good friend Shane Lowry in singles on Nos. 10 and 13.
Both McIlroy and Lowry played across the world, but somehow McIlroy was able to get over the jet lag faster. It actually, McIlroy explained, wasn’t too hard compared to his good friend.
“He doesn’t have his own plane,” McIlroy said with a laugh.
Boston Common outscored The Bay by an incredible 8-0 margin over the final 11 holes of the match.
It was a tough night from the jump for The Bay, as Shane Lowry ended up yelling, ‘Fore!’ off the tee on the first – after missing his drive well right. Min Woo Lee – who was making his season two debut – hit his approach shot on the first hole into the water for a penalty, and although it was the first hole of the night, that was, essentially, that.
“It wasn’t great, was it?” Lowry said. “We just didn’t play very well.”
Considering how poorly Boston Common played through the opening season, this is quite the turnaround. And, according to Keegan Bradley, the product of some serious learning year-over-year.
“I was really having trouble. The ball was overdrawing in here for me last year, and this year it's been a lot better. But getting in and doing the work, learning the holes -- it's very rare you can go play a practice round and hit the exact shots and know where the pins are and know exactly where this putt breaks, getting in here and putting in that effort to win,” Bradley said. “It means a lot to me to play for a Boston team. It was my dream as a kid to do that, and I'm 39 years old now; I'm getting to fulfill a dream I had as a kid. This truly means a lot to me to represent this city, this region that we're from.
“(Last year) was brutal. We want to go there and win the whole thing this year, and we're off to a good start.
The 9-1 triumph by Boston Common marks the largest margin of victory in the second season of TGL, and the squad has its young star-in-waiting to thank.
“Michael has been an amazing addition to the team, has sort of taken to this style of golf really, really easily, much easier than Keegan and I did last year,” McIlroy said with a smile. “But I think with a little more experience from us, we're getting more comfortable in here, too, and it's showed over the first two matches.”
