Tiger Woods-Backed SPAC Cancels IPO Plans

A sports-related blank-check company just bit the dust. 

Sports & Health Tech Acquisition Corp., a SPAC backed by 15-time major champion Tiger Woods, has shuttered its plans to raise $150 million in an initial public offering. 

The IPO, which was first announced in January 2022, would have valued the blank-check firm at $600 million.

• Sports & Health Tech was led by IeAD Sports Ltd. chairman Andrew White. 
• The SPAC had planned to target a merger in the sports or health tech sectors. 
• Mark Steinberg — a golf agent for Excel Sports Management — was an executive.
• Steinberg has represented Woods for over 25 years. 

The collapse of Sports & Health Tech’s IPO follows a recent trend. According to a report by Forbes, 21 of 33 SPACs tied to famous public figures reported negative returns for 2021. Last year, more than 30 mergers with SPACs fitting that same profile were called off. 

New Endeavor

In August 2022, Woods, Rory McIlroy, and Mike McCarley — co-founders of newly formed TMRW Sports Group — announced the launch of TGL, a new golf league that will operate in partnership with the PGA Tour. The tech-infused league will play events at specially designed virtual courses in front of live crowds and larger television audiences starting in January 2024.

Last year, TMRW Sports added marquee strategic investors after unveiling TGL. The company has a portfolio that includes sports luminaries Serena Williams, Andy Murray, Steph Curry, Josh Allen, and Shohei Ohtani.