Former Georgia Tech standout Castro a perfect fit for TGL analyst role
Roberto Castro didn’t set out to become a television analyst. It just worked out that way.
The former Georgia Tech All-American golfer has been added to the weekly TMRW Golf League broadcast to analyze and explain the holes — many of them borderline bizarre — that are being played on the giant indoor screen at the SoFi Center and televised to a nationwide ESPN audience.
Castro brings a special insight to the process, not only because he played the PGA Tour from 2012-20, but because in his role with CapTech, a national information technology management consulting firm, he helped develop and hone the technology to operate the TGL’s giant simulator and platform.
So when the idea was floated to add another voice to the broadcast, Castro’s name came up.
“It’s kind of a unique fit because I probably know more about TGL, especially from a player’s perspective, than anybody,” Castro said. “Just really the right place, right time and interesting sequence of events.”
Castro, 40, had no experience as an announcer, but has long been known for his ability to clearly express himself — even when he was a junior golfer at Milton High School. He was a four-time All-American at Tech, was a two-time member of the Palmer Cup team and the captain in 2005, and in 2007 won the Byron Nelson Award that goes to the nation’s top senior.
“I enjoy media. I enjoy public speaking. I’ve got a podcast (the “Course Record Show”) that has been a lot of fun,” Castro said. “I do enjoy all of that, but I did not really have television on my list because I thought about it too narrowly. PGA Tour coverage is a big commitment, and it’s a special skill, but that was not really a goal. This is so different. It’s a short season. It’s all on the East Coast, and it’s very comfortable for me.”
Castro had a successful professional career, twice finishing second in a PGA Tour event and being ranked as high as No. 64 in the world in 2013. He has played in all four majors, including twice in the Masters. But as he got older, Castro realized he no longer was able to hit the ball far enough to hang with the new breed of bombers, so he parlayed his Tech education into a position at CapTech. And when the opportunity came along to work with the TGL project, Castro was a natural fit.
“I was really fortunate to be part of the CapTech team for three or four years to bring it to life,” Castro said. “And I was really closely involved in Season 1 and did all the testing, I mean the whole process from early testing in the venue to the day before the first match.”
That insight has made Castro an ideal candidate to work with the broadcast and he’s been able to convey the information to the viewers.
“I’ve been trying to work on it,” he said. “When I went into the business world, CapTech is a consulting firm and at the core what we do is take disorganized, complicated information and simplify it and try to communicate it to other companies. I’ve made an effort to improve, and I think, slowly but surely, I’m getting there.”
The TGL matches typically are played on a Monday or Tuesday night, which gives players an opportunity to get to the PGA Tour destinations in time. The Atlanta Drive, which won the first SoFi Cup last year, has its next match Feb. 2 against Tiger Woods and the Jupiter Links team.
About the Author
Stan Awtrey has been covering sports for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 1977. He currently writes about high school sports, Georgia State University athletics and golf.
