‘Can’t live in two houses at once,’ says Kapil Dev as PGTI launches own professional league to rival IGPL

The friction in Indian golf is set to increase with the PGTI announcing the launch of ‘72 The League’ a franchise-based national professional league on Thursday.

Created in partnership with Game of Life Sports (GOLS), the league is scheduled to be held from February 21-March 6 next year across three Delhi-NCR venues in its inaugural season – Qutab Golf Course (Delhi), Classic Golf & Country Club (Gurugram) and Jaypee Greens (Greater Noida). The announcement comes months after the launch of the rival Indian Golf Premier League featuring some of India’s premier golfers.

While the IGPL is supposed to happen in January 2026 and have its auction by the end of this year, there is no update on the same. The auction for 72 is scheduled to be held next month with a pool of Rs. six crores with the franchises yet to be finalised.

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Both leagues are expected to feature six teams with 10 pro golfers each but while IGPL will have both men and women, 72 will be only for men to begin with. The former is also planned to be played home-and-away across the country. The format for both is also different – the IGPL will be a no-cut, three-day strokeplay event over four weeks while the 72 will be played in matchplay format.

While he denied the league was a reaction to IGPL, PGTI president Kapil Dev made it clear golfers had to choose. “We have not sanctioned or banned any golfer for participating in any competition. We have nothing against any golfer who decides to participate in any league, any chance to earn money is a good thing. But they cannot be part of two parallel organisations simultaneously. Do ghar me ek sath nahi reh sakte (you cannot stay in two homes at the same time),” Kapil said.

The 72’s league commissioner Amrit Mathur admitted the selection of franchises would be critical. “We have learnt from all the different leagues in the country and understand that each sport has its own unique dynamics and we need to respect that. The main objective is to get the right owners who understand this is not a get-rich quick money scheme but a long-term commitment,” he said.

Published on Dec 11, 2025