NEW YORK—They may have fallen short in the Western Conference finals, but the Oklahoma City Thunder topped the list of most-watched NBA teams in 2025-26, drawing 1.8 million viewers per game in the regular season, according to Nielsen viewing data.

The No. 2 team was the Los Angeles Lakers—the team that boasted the most-watched player, per Nielsen, in LeBron James—followed by the Eastern Conference champion New York Knicks.

Another participant in this week’s NBA Finals, San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama, trailed James as the league’s second-most-watched player.

Nielsen’s Spring 2026 “Tops of Sports’ report also noted double-digit growth in viewership across pro basketball (up 27%), NHL hockey (25%), auto racing (44%) and golf (12%*), fueled by new streaming and broadcast options, the massive popularity of global stars and changing ways that fans follow their favorite teams.

More specifically, the NBA’s average audience for regular-season games was up 27%, with the early rounds of the playoffs seeing a 10% bump. The league benefited from new media-rights deals that helped it reach younger viewers on streamers Prime Video, Peacock and ESPN Unlimited while still drawing larger audiences on broadcasters ABC and NBC and cable network ESPN.

The NHL is also experiencing a major boost, with average regular-season viewership up 25% to 540,000 viewers per game, and the first round of the playoffs up 77%, to 1.2 million viewers. The growth was bolstered by significant cultural moments involving hockey, such as the gold medal wins by the U.S. men’s and women’s ice hockey teams at the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, Prime Video’s hit series “Off-Campus” and drama series “Heated Rivalry” on HBO Max, which notched nearly 2 billion streaming minutes in the first quarter, Nielsen said.

Followers of the NHL’s official TikTok account were up 83% this season, Nielsen reported. Further demonstrating America’s growing interest, the national TV debut of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (PWHL) drew about 133,000 viewers to Ion, with 45% of the audience women 18-plus. In addition, demonstrating the buying power of hockey fans, NHL viewers rank No. 3 in median income among all sports watchers.

Last year’s Indianapolis 500 averaged more than 7 million viewers, the most in 17 years. The 2026 IndyCar season is already off to a strong start, with the first five races averaging 1.2 million viewers, 44% higher than the same period in 2025. Viewer interest is also rising, with 19% of respondents reporting being somewhat or very interested in IndyCar this March, up from 15% in March of 2023.

So far this year, the PGA Tour is averaging 1.5 million viewers. Efforts to evolve the franchise’s social media presence may be paying off, as Nielsen Scarborough data shows a steady increase in interest since 2023. *An influx of young Asian talent like Collin Morikawa, Akshay Bhatia, and Si Woo Kim looks to be helping to expand the tour’s audience, with Asian viewership to PGA Tour events up 12% so far this year.

BRISTOL, Conn.—The PGA TOUR and ESPN are doubling sports betting coverage for the 2026 PGA TOUR Season with a new watch-and-bet experience.

PGA TOUR LIVE Betcast presented by DraftKings will air on ESPN during 12 PGA TOUR events throughout the year, beginning with the WM Phoenix Open, Feb. 5-8, at TPC Scottsdale.

The Betcast at each event will air more than eight hours during each of the four days of play on the ESPN App, alongside the Main Feed, Featured Group and Featured Hole streams. With more than 400 hours in total across the 2026 PGA TOUR Season, the Betcast will feature golf-related betting discussion, live betting analysis, upcoming previews and tournament features, such as tournament winner and matchups.

PGA TOUR LIVE Betcast, which debuted in the 2025 season with 50 hours of coverage across six events, is now presented by DraftKings.

Jonathan Coachman will serve as host, joined by Matt Every and Michael Collins as the show’s analysts. Graham DeLaet, Jeff Eisenband, Steve Scott and Kevin Sylvester will offer additional hosting and analyst support, while Rick Gehman will contribute across the betting feeds throughout the season.

In addition to the WM Phoenix Open, Betcast will include:

• The Genesis Invitational, Feb. 19-22.
• Arnold Palmer Invitational presented by Mastercard, March 5-8.
• THE PLAYERS Championship, March 5-8.
• RBC Heritage, April 16-19.
• Cadillac Championship, April 30-May 3.
• Truist Championship, May 7-10.
• The Memorial Tournament presented by Workday, June 4-7.
• Travelers Championship, June 25-28.
• Fed Ex St. Jude Championship, Aug. 13-16.
• BMW Championship, Aug. 20-23.
• TOUR Championship, Aug. 27-30.

More information is available on the ESPN website.

LOS ANGELES and PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Florida—Amazon’s Prime Video has announced a new deal that will allow it to exclusively stream a revival of the PGA Tour’s “The Skins Game” on Black Friday this year.

The agreement adds to Amazon’s growing lineup of live sports, which will also include NFL and NBA coverage on Nov. 28, and marks the first time since 2008 that the event has aired on TV.

Prime Video said it will “exclusively broadcast the special event globally, produced by Pro Shop and Propagate Content in coordination with PGA Tour Studios."

“We’ve taken up the mantle to bring back The Skins Game, and we’re proud to work alongside PGA Tour Studios, Prime Video and Propagate Content to reintroduce this iconic event and reclaim its rightful place on the sports calendar,” said Chad Mumm, co-founder and president of Pro Shop. “By keeping the traditional format intact and adding some creative twists, we’re giving fans an experience that honors the past while delivering pure, high-stakes competition where the pressure builds with every shot.”

Charlie Neiman, head of sports partnerships, Prime Video, added: "Partnering with PGA Tour Studios, Pro Shop and Propagate Content to broadcast this storied event with four of the game's most captivating stars opens more than 15 hours of exclusive live sports coverage on Prime Video, and underscores our commitment to delivering innovative, premium sports programming to fans around the world.”

Originally introduced in 1983 as an unofficial money event on the PGA Tour, The Skins Game became a staple on the sports calendar, showcasing high-stakes competition among golf’s biggest stars, including Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer, Fred Couples, Gary Player and Tiger Woods.

Slated to compete in the relaunched “The Skins Game” are 2025 FedExCup Champion, 2025 Ryder Cup points leader and seven-time DP World Tour champion Tommy Fleetwood; 16-time PGA Tour winner Justin Thomas; two-time major champion Xander Schauffele; and eight-time PGA Tour winner Keegan Bradley. The foursome—which has combined to win 34 career PGA Tour events—will compete at the new Panther National in South Florida, the vision of Jack Nicklaus and Thomas in his debut design.

Coverage will begin at 9 a.m. ET on Nov. 28 and lead directly into a busy day of live sports for Prime Video that also includes the third annual Black Friday Football game and a brand-new NBA on Prime doubleheader. Additional coverage details will be announced in the coming weeks, the streamer reported.

The producers said that the format will remain true to the traditional Skins Game structure, where each hole carries a dollar value and tied holes roll over to raise the stakes. In an exciting twist for the reimagined Skins Game, the event will feature a “reverse purse”—all players will begin the competition with $1 million on the scoreboard and fans will watch as the players’ fortunes rise and fall with every hole won or lost, Prime Video reported.

“The Skins Game was always bigger than golf. It was a cultural event that brought sports and entertainment together in a way fans hadn’t seen before,” Propagate Content CEO Ben Silverman said. “At Propagate, we’re thrilled to partner with PGA Tour Studios, Prime Video, and Pro Shop to reimagine this iconic franchise for a new generation, combining tradition with innovation to deliver a spectacle that captures the drama and personality that made The Skins Game legendary.”

Added PGA Tour Senior Vice President, Media Chris Wandell: “The PGA Tour is proud to bring back the iconic Skins Game as the kickoff to the sports calendar’s biggest day of the year. With four of our game’s biggest stars competing in a modern reimagining of this nostalgic event, fans around the world are in for a treat this Black Friday as the TOUR tees off a full day of sports action on Prime Video.”

CHARLOTTE, N.C.—One of the most striking developments to emerge at the 2025 Golfweek Tech Lab gathering here May 15 at the J.W. Marriott was the laser-like focus placed by several startup tech firms, the venture capital community and the PGA Tour itself on fan engagement technology.

Companies like Bleachr, Cue, Mobii and PlayANYWHERE showed the 90 attendees their unique spins on elevating the experience of fans engaging with golf and other sports via their smartphones and other connected devices.

Not to be outdone, the PGA Tour is pursuing its own fan engagement strategy. “One of the big cultural shifts over the past five or six years is meeting the fans where they are,” says Scott Gutterman, senior vice president, Digital & Broadcast, for the PGA Tour, noting the tour is “getting closer and closer to the personalization … that people want.”

Also Read: CBS Sports Adds Innovative AR to Massive PGA Championship Coverage

Speaking during a fireside chat on the way technology is being used to capture a younger audience, Gutterman discussed how the PGA Tour is using AI platforms to “tell a story about every shot”—no small feat, given the 30,000 to 32,000 shots made during a typical tour event.

Each of those mini-stories will ultimately serve as the foundation of a service that delivers highlights to fans of their favorite players on their smartphones “when they’re running around town going to [kids’] soccer games, but they want to keep up,” he said.

Of course, the PGA Tour already relies on a variety of digital platforms, ranging from streaming via ESPN+ to distributing highlights via TikTok, to keep fans engaged with daily play as tournaments unfold.

“When I first arrived at the Tour [20 years ago], the rule was to get people to watch three hours of golf every single day,” Gutterman said. “Now really our stance on this has changed. How do we bring fans to the PGA Tour in any way? How do we meet fans where they are?”

What enables this innovation to drive deeper fan engagement? It would seem to be the same thing responsible for the countless other innovations that improve the lives of people in this country: freedom and the desire to profit.

But what about television broadcasters? Are they free to leverage the latest technologies to deliver the same sorts of personalized experiences with the content they broadcast to engage their “fans,” the viewers, more deeply and unlock new sources of revenue?

Enter Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr’s Delete, Delete, Delete deregulation initiative. The public notice announcing it said in part: “The Communications Act directs the FCC to regularly review its rules to identify and eliminate those that are unnecessary in light of current circumstances, recognizing that in addition to imposing unnecessary burdens, unnecessary rules may stand in the way of deployment, expansion, competition and technological innovation in communications that the Commission is directed to advance.”

Setting aside comments and reply comments filed at the agency with regards to NAB’s rulemaking petition aimed at having the agency establish dates certain for the ATSC 1.0 shutoff, I can’t help but read that quote and think about how rules are standing in the way of broadcasters’ “deployment, expansion, competition, and technological innovation.”

Some in this industry seem to be most interested in delete, delete, delete when it comes to ownership rules. But for the long-term health of the industry, it is equally important that the agency eliminate rules stifling tech innovation.

 BRISTOL, Conn.—ESPN+ is taking advantage of the personalization features available on streaming media for its coverage of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play from Austin Country Club in Austin, Texas. 

Starting on March 23, the PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ will stream four-feed coverage of the action, which features a unique match play format that includes 64 of the top 69 players in the world divided into 16 four-player groups. During the first three rounds Wednesday through Friday, players in each group will play 18-hole matches against each other to determine the 16 players who advance to the weekend’s single elimination rounds.

The four feeds available on PGA Tour Live on ESPN+ include:

• Main Feed – The primary tournament coverage stream, showcasing the best action from across the course, with two dedicated booth announcers, a dedicated walking announcer and coverage drawn from all cameras at the event.
• Marquee Group – Every shot from each player in the group, with two booth announcers and one walking announcer calling the action.
• Featured Holes – Exclusive coverage of key par 3 holes and the course’s iconic, signature holes.
• Featured Groups – Traditional PGA Tour Live coverage following two concurrent featured groups, with two booth announcers and one walking announcer.

A Main Feed and the Marquee Match feed will start at 10:15 a.m. ET on March 23, followed by Featured Matches at 10:30 a.m. ET, and Featured Holes coverage 10:45 a.m. ET. The Featured Holes feed will cover the par-3 Nos. 4, 7 and 11, along with the par-4 13th on the Pete Dye-designed course.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla.—The PGA Tour and NBC Sports have launched the free-to-play game “PGA Tour Pick’Em Live” within the official PGA Tour app and on the Tour’s website. The game, which was developed by Low6 and powered by PointsBet in North America, is designed to enhance fan engagement with live in-play games and weekly prizes, the companies said. 

Fans can enter the game at nearly any point during a tournament week and make selections on competitions including overall winner, group winner and head-to-head, with the points system directly tied to live odds.

PGA Tour Pick’em Live will feature guaranteed weekly prizes valued up to $5,000, with the first competition opening on February 15 in advance of The Genesis Invitational. Once player groupings and tee times are confirmed each week, the full set of game options within “PGA Tour Pick’Em Live” will be available for users to begin making selections.

"We look forward to working with NBC Sports, PointsBet and Low6 to provide a free-to-play game for PGA Tour fans," said Norb Gambuzza, PGA Tour senior vice president, media and gaming. "Sports betting products in golf continue to experience tremendous growth so we’re excited to provide our fans with the option to experience exciting in-play games in a free-to-play environment."

“At PointsBet, enhancing fan engagement across all markets is a key focus for us, and we’re excited to be working with Low6, NBC Sports and the PGA Tour on a product that does just that,” said Eric Foote, PointsBet chief commercial officer. “As we continue to increase the number of in-play betting opportunities, ‘PGA Tour Pick’Em Live’ helps us redefine and elevate the way we interact with PGA Tour fans. This launch not only underscores our commitment to diversifying our portfolio of innovative products for customers, but it also highlights how and where we can reach users.”

PGA Tour Pick'em Live is available in the PGA Tour app, downloadable on iOS and Android, or on PGATour.COM at https://pickemlive.pgatour.com/. PGA Tour Pick’Em Live will be integrated into GOLFchannel.com, NBCsports.com and GOLF Channel.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla.—The PGA Tour and TrackMan have announced that they are expanding the usage of TrackMan’s ball tracking and tracing solution in 2022.  By combining TrackMan’s cutting-edge Doppler Radar and club and ball tracking technology, Tour events will have tracing capabilities for nearly every golf shot hit during the season.  

This agreement will double previous ball-in-motion tracing capabilities on the golf course, allowing nearly every shot to be traced and automatically shared with television and OTT partners and across Tour digital platforms such as PGATour.COM and the PGA Tour app. 

The arrangement with TrackMan begins in 2022 for PGA Tour LIVE and Tour digital platforms, while the domestic television partner agreement begins in 2023.

“We’re excited to increase the volume and depth of tracking and tracing for every shot on the PGA Tour,” said Ken Lovell, PGA Tour senior vice president golf technologies. “TrackMan’s sensors will substantially increase content available for analysis and initiate the development of new insights, while creating the opportunity for us to develop innovative visualizations for fans to view all the incredible shots on Tour.”

The agreement means that fans will see more information beginning in 2022 on how and why the ball moves and arrives at a certain position. This is achieved by using TrackMan technology to capture club speed, ball speed, curve, landing spin, launch angle, spin rate, spin axis, apex, carry and more. The advanced aerodynamic models can also determine the effects of wind, weather, and altitude on a shot so that fans can understand how a shot was impacted by environmental factors, the companies said. 

In addition to doubling the collection of radar and tracing information, the new system will substantially increase the range and sensitivity of the content that will now be layered with video for use on any Tour media platform.

Klaus Eldrup-Jorgensen, co-founder and CEO of TrackMan, added that “we have been working closely with the PGA Tour for more than 15 years, to accurately measure and report data on club delivery, ball launch, ball flight, and tracers for the best players in the world. We are proud to be chosen to implement our new solutions with the PGA Tour, which will ultimately include all shots for all players. The future of golf will be told in new and innovative ways, the fan experience will elevate to a new level, and the stories about how good these guys play is just beginning.”

The new technology being deployed expands tracking capabilities from tee boxes only to shots hit from the fairway and around the green, where the system determines the exact 3D position of the ball at any point in its flight. The TrackMan technology has the ability to lock onto a ball that starts behind the trees and only becomes visible to the radar halfway through its flight. It’s able to accurately track balls up to 400 yards in any conditions; rain, fog, sunrise, and sunset.

For a typical Tour event, around 40 units are placed around the course to track shots with advanced radar and camera units on tee boxes and greens to capture final resting position.

TrackMan also recently developed a mobile system that will be used for the capture of radar and tracing information from the fairway and will automatically integrate into Tour media platforms, which is aided by AWS, the Tour’s Official Cloud Provider. There are no cables or connections with the mobile system, which adds very little weight for the operator. The Tour is testing the mobile system for expanded future use on PGA Tour Champions, the Korn Ferry Tour and in other executions.

The club and ball tracking and tracing system will utilize AWS Fargate, Media Services, and numerous other AWS products to process and deliver radar and tracing on every shot in nearly real-time. The full suite of AWS products will allow TrackMan to reduce their onsite footprint and allow fast and easy access to the devices and information from anywhere around the world.

The club and ball tracking and tracing solution has also become a valuable element to “ShotLink powered by CDW,” the Tour’s real-time data collection and scoring system. As the Tour and CDW continue to innovate the acclaimed scoring system that has benefited tournaments, broadcast partners, players and fans, TrackMan system contributes to the automated data collection efforts by allowing ShotLink to auto-trigger on shots without input from a person, the companies said. 

SEATTLE—The PGA Tour is adding Amazon Web Services (AWS) into its bag, choosing AWS to be its official cloud provider to help transform the way golf content is created, distributed and experienced for fans, Amazon said.

In addition to being the official cloud provider, AWS will also be the PGA Tour’s official artificial intelligence cloud provider, deep learning cloud provider and machine learning cloud provider.

The Tour will use AWS machine learning, storage, compute, analytics, database and media services to process and distribute video footage from each golf tournament. These will be used to create special PGA Tour features, including Every Shot Live, an OTT streaming platform powered by AWS that provides viewers live access to every shot from every player in a tournament.

AWS will also support TOURCast, a new version of the Tour leaderboard that gives fans “video game-like control” of how they watch a golf tournament, per Amazon. Fans will be able to change their viewing perspective with alternative camera angles, navigate around the course, view speed rounds and display player and shot stats on demand.

With AWS Media Services, the PGA Tour will be able to deliver video content faster for televised event coverage and OTT streaming, Amazon said. This process will have the Tour use AWS to simultaneously process and distribute OTT content, formatting it for reliable viewing over different delivery platforms and devices. AWS Media Services will also make tournament footage available to authenticated broadcasters, content subscribers from AWS and other sources.

Other AWS services that the PGA Tour will use includes the Amazon Simple Storage Service (S3) for compiling past and future multimedia content, and Amazon Rekognition, which will automatically tag content with specific metadata.

“This transformational partnership with AWS will give our fans the opportunity to experience the PGA Tour like never before,” said PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan. “Growing and diversifying our fan base is a top priority for us, and thanks to the collaboration and innovation from AWS, we are creating more ways to experience the game of golf, while personalizing our content to enable fans to engage with the tournaments and players they support.”

In addition, as part of the deal AWS will become a trustee of First Tee, a youth development organization supported by the PGA Tour.

For more information, visit www.aws.amazon.com/sports.  

NEW YORK—CBS Sports is preparing to tee off its 64th consecutive year of covering PGA Tour golf, which will include a number of new elements being added to its production of tournaments.

Among the new features that will be added to CBS Sports' production is live drone coverage; enhanced capabilities and presentation for its SmartCart mobile production unit; and a constant mini-leaderboard graphic. The broadcast is also adding a dedicated PGA Tour rules official and new theme music.

Sellers Shy will oversee CBS Sports’ coverage of the season, having been appointed as the new lead producer for PGA Tour coverage. Shy is just the third lead producer in CBS’ 64 years of covering the PGA Tour, per ViacomCBS.

While some things change, Jim Nantz and Nick Faldo will continue to serve as the lead anchor and golf analyst, respectively, for CBS Sports’ golf coverage. They will be joined by analysts Ian Baker-Finch and Frank Nobilo, lead on-course reporter Dottie Pepper and the rest of the CBS golf announce team, which includes Mark Immelman, Trevor Immelman and Amanda Balionis. Andrew Catalon and Colt Knost are expected to join for select broadcasts as well.

For all PGA Tour events in 2021, CBS Sports’ full coverage will be available to stream live in U.S. markets via the CBS All Access subscription streaming platform (Paramount+ as of March 4). Additional coverage will be available on CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app and the CBS Sports HQ streaming sports news service.

CBS Sports will produce 20 PGA Tour events in 2021, kicking off with the Farmers Insurance Open from Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego on Jan. 30 and Jan. 31.

PONTE VERDA BEACH, Fla.—The PGA Tour has announced that the upcoming CJ Cup at Shadow Creek tournament will be its first telecast to feature live betting odds.

Provided by BetMGM, betting odds will occur twice per hour during the telecast, featuring leaderboards with integrated “open” and “current” odds to win, as well as odds on head-to-head matchups, top finishes, winning margin, wire-to-wire winner, hole-in-ones and playoffs.

The PGA Tour has been integrating live odds into its PGA Tour Live digital platforms since August.

Betting odds will be provided during all four rounds of the CJ Cup tournament, which takes place from Oct. 15-18.

NEW YORK—CBS Sports has had to rely on new production techniques to bring PGA Tour golf tournaments to fans during the pandemic. One new technique is the use of at-home/REMI production technology from The Switch for live telecasts.

Supported by The Switch through its Burbank, Calif.-based control rooms and on-site low-latency connectivity, CBS Sports Productions has been able to produce a number of at-home/REMI telecasts in recent weeks that aired on the Golf Channel, including coverage of the recent PGA Championship.

For these broadcasts, 24 cameras and a multitude of audio sources were transported from each golf course to the Burbank control rooms. These sources were available to the CBS crew in Stamford, Conn., for them to produce and direct the telecast, replays and editorial off multiviewers. The Switch’s Burbank location also served as the originator for broadcast features like Top Tracer, Hawk-Eye and Video Shading.

This setup connects teams from around the U.S. This includes the site of the tournament where CBS host Jim Nantz broadcasts, as well as Orlando, Fla., where other CBS golf analysts call the tournament from. It also helps connect additional places needed for CBS Sports’ production, including New Zealand.

Of course, the need for remote production arose because of the COVID-19 pandemic to help keep production crews safe. The Switch maintains that “safety-first” practice at its Burbank facility, with technical and production crews handling the broadcasts remotely in Burbank, which reduced the number of personnel required on the course for each tournament. 

In addition, “containment zones” have been erected in the control, audio, replay, graphics and support rooms that only designated people can access. The Switch has also reworked its HVAC system to bring only outside air into containment zones; separate building entrances have been created; hygiene and deep-cleaning protocols have been put in place; and personnel in the containment zones were sequestered and administered daily COVID screening protocols.

“Certainly none of us anticipated the COVID outbreak and the impact to live sports, but the collective engineering, operations and production teams have done a remarkable job to bring back broadcast quality, live PGA Tour golf to an enthusiastic public audience in this new environment,” said Eric Cooney, president and CEO of The Switch. “While many of the COVID-related complexities will diminish as the pandemic is brought under control, our industry has significantly accelerated its comfort level and adoption of remote production solutions. We look forward to pushing the creative envelope with our broadcast partners in the rapid evolution of live sports production.”

For more information, visit www.theswitch.tv.  

FORT WORTH, Texas—“This is the most complicated production plan I’ve ever been involved in,” said Sean McManus, chairman of CBS Sports, during a conference call on the network’s return to live PGA Tour coverage with the Charles Schwab Challenge from June 11-14 at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth,Texas.

What’s on hand for the CBS Sports crew is a full-fledged PGA Tour event with a reduced crew on the course, more mobile trucks, multiple remote locations and a couple of new features to try and add to the broadcast in the absence of live fans, resulting in “a golf production unlike any other” that took two months of planning, per McManus. But that’s what is called for as sports leagues and broadcasters return from months-long hiatuses because of the coronavirus pandemic.

CBS is working with NBCUniversal’s Golf Channel on the broadcast, with the same production and announcing team handling all four days of the tournament. This will allow for half of the normal amount of people to be on-site than is typical for a PGA tour production. Despite the reduced number of crew people, there will actually be more mobile production trucks at the course so that proper social distancing practices can be maintained, with about nine people working in a single truck.

In addition to the coverage that CBS will be providing, the PGA Tour has announced that it will be collaborating with Twitter by using its PGA Tour Live feed to create a “Twitter Multicast” on Thursday, June 11, from 1-2:30 p.m. ET. There will be nine video streams of Featured Groups coverage with athletes, celebrities and other personalities providing commentary. The guest commentators will include Charles Davis, Annika Sorenstam, Darius Rucker and Dude Perfect. For more information, visit pgatour.com. 

STAYING SAFE

There is an additional wrinkle when it comes to the production crews during these first few weeks. The crew that is working this tournament will also work next week’s RBC Heritage in Hilton Head, S.C. After that, an entirely new crew will take over the production for the next two events on the schedule. In addition, backup crew members are available in the event that anyone on the crew does become ill.

Among the on-site team will be commentator Jim Nantz, who will call the action of the tournament alone in the broadcast tower on the 18th hole—a change of pace from the typical five to six usually in the booth, according to McManus. There will also be only two on-course reporters—Dottie Pepper and Mark Immelman. The rest of the broadcasting team will be working remotely in various locations, including Nantz’s partner Nick Faldo from the Golf Channel Studios in Orlando, Fla. 

Other production elements for the broadcast, like scoring graphics, remote editing, video shading, multiple replay devices and more, will be done from additional remote locations that include Los Angeles, New York, Samford, Conn., and New Zealand.

Some production elements have not been drastically changed, McManus said. The production will feature 23 cameras, including 10 hard cameras, six mini RF cameras, as well as robotic cameras. Other recognizable features for a CBS golf broadcast will still be present, including the 3D Toptracer for following live tee shots and Toptracer RF for players’ second shots; ARL Virtual Eye meanwhile uses Toptracer ball tracing capabilities to use with 3D hole models. CBS’ SwingVision technology will also be available.

EXPANDING USE OF HAWKEYE

However, there are some new additions to the production. ARL Virtual Signage is augmented reality technology that can virtually place statistics, player information and sponsorship partnerships on the course with full trackable camera moves. The Hawkeye Replay Source, meanwhile, sees an operator control camera angles remotely for real-time replays. Hawkeye has been a feature on CBS digital platforms in the past, but will now be integrated into the linear broadcast for the first time. 

In addition, CBS is pushing to have more players mic’d up during their rounds so they can share conversations between players and their caddies while on the course. There will also be a drone camera on-site that the production hopes to be able to use, weather permitting.

Something entirely new for the broadcast that both meets COVID-19 safety protocols and has eyes at being a new permanent element beyond the pandemic is the “Inside the Ropes” feature. This is a tented area that will be placed between the green of one hole and the tee box of another (as of publication the specific location for the Charles Schawb Challenge was not determined) with an unmanned camera and boom mic that players enter and give short answers to prompted questions that can then be woven into the broadcast.

The Charles Schwab Challenge is the first of 11 straight weeks of tournaments on the PGA Tour schedule. According to McManus, this production plan will be in place for the first four tournaments, with possible adjustments as the season progresses. McManus said he would not be surprised, however, if these were the plans for the rest of the year.

“Golf is the most difficult sport to produce to begin with,” McManus said. However, he continued, “we’re learning a lot of lessons, and some of the lessons that we’re learning will allow us to produce golf in a more efficient way.”

“The amount of detail that has gone into planning this, and having a backup plan to the backup plan, it has been extraordinary,” said Nantz on the conference call. “This crew’s ready for it. It’s as well planned out as anything I’ve been a part of.”

The Charles Schwab Challenge takes place from June 11-14 with Golf Channel airing coverage each day and CBS handling coverage on Saturday and Sunday afternoons.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla.—PGA Tour broadcasts are staying right where they are, as the professional golf organization announced that it has reached a nine-year domestic media rights portfolio for 2022-2030 that will have CBS and NBC continue to serve as the TV home of golf. However, one new wrinkle is that streaming rights for the PGA has been granted to Disney’s ESPN+ service.

As part of the deal, CBS and NBC will maintain weekend coverage of most FedEx Cup tournaments; CBS will handle an average of 19 per season, NBC eight. It was also announced that the two networks will alternate each year who hosts the entire three-tournament FedEx Cup Playoffs (NBC will start in 2022).

NBC Sports Group will also continue as the tour’s cable partner, with the Golf Channel providing early-round and early weekend coverage.

A new aspect of the deal with CBS and NBC is that the PGA Tour will now assume responsibility of the onsite production area and technical infrastructure at each tournament. This will help in the tour’s ability to aggregate, distribute and develop content for various platforms. CBS and NBC will still use their own production and announcing teams.

When it comes to streaming, the PGA Tour has struck a deal with Disney’s ESPN+ streaming service. The tour’s subscription video service, PGA Tour Live, will now exclusively be available via ESPN+ starting in 2022. PGA Tour Live, in addition to its thousands of hours of annual coverage of tournaments, plans to expand its live content channels.

In addition, the PGA Tour also expanded the U.S. media deal for the LPGA Tour. The LPGA Tour will have a similar nine-year deal (2022-2030) for its tournaments to air on the Golf Channel, but the deal also details expanded exposure for LPGA Tour events on CBS and NBC each year.

The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

PONTE VERDA BEACH, Fla.—Facebook is hitting the links, as the PGA Tour has announced that it has come to an agreement for the social media company to distribute daily highlight packages to global users through Facebook Watch.

The PGA Tour will publish daily round recaps and player-specific highlights from more than 30 events on the PGA Tour schedule, including The Players Championship and the FedExCup Playoffs. The content will come from tournament telecasts, as well as from the PGA Tour Live OTT service.

Fans can follow the PGA Tour’s Facebook page to stay up to date with available content, which will be posted at the completion of each tournament round. The Tour will also have interactive elements like Facebook Lives and Facebook Watch Parties through its Facebook Group, The Gallery.

Available content will begin with the Farmers Insurance Open, which takes place starting Jan. 23 at Torrey Pines Golf Course in San Diego.

The PGA Tour and Facebook had previously partnered to offer live streaming coverage of The Players Championship and FedExCup Playoffs.

PONTE VERDE BEACH, Fla.—Golf fans can feel like a walk-on in a pairing of their choosing at The Players Championship 2020, with the PGA Tour and NBC Sports Group announcing that every player during each round of the tournament will be live-streamed. PGA Tour Live subscribers will be able to watch each swing from players on either NBC Sports Gold or Amazon Prime Video Channels.

To capture the more than 32,000 shots that are expected to make up The Players Championship, there will be nearly 120 cameras on the course, with a dedicated camera following each group.

“Our vision is to bring every shot in every PGA Tour golf tournament live and on-demand to our fans, and this is the first step to making that happen,” said Rick Anderson, chief media officer for the PGA Tour.

The Players Championship will be held from March 12-15, 2020, at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Verde Beach, Fla.

The PGA Tour and NBC Sports have also announced a few other initiatives for the new golf season to boost coverage. This includes the addition of early round coverage of featured groups at seven events from September to December in 2019, including the live streaming of featured matches at the Presidents Cup in December.

There is also a new TOURCast product that will allow fans to follow every shot from each group with a 3D rendering of the golf course and shot trails. TOURCast also has access to the PGA Tour’s ShortLink powered by CDW data and video clips of every single shot for on-demand viewing. Fans can access TOURCast through the PGA Tour’s website and mobile app.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, Fla.—PGA Tour AR is adding a new feature to its augmented reality app that presents live augmented reality and 360-degree tournament coverage of the No. 1 and 18 holes on the Pebble Beach Golf Links at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, the PGA Tour announced this week.

“360-degree Tee Box presented by AT&T” is available to fans in the United States on their Apple device. Once launched, fans are asked to scan the floor and tap to start the 360-degree experience. An AR green with the Pebble Beach flag appears and directs fans to walk toward the green.

When on the green, a 360-degree video from the No. 1 or No. 18 hole tee box appears. Fans can move their phones around to view the video. The “360-degree Tee Box presented by AT&T” will go live one hour before the first tee time Feb. 7-10.

“The AT&T 360° Tee Box in the PGA Tour AR app offers fans a unique and exclusive view of Pebble Beach Golf Links,” said Devon Fox, PGA Tour director, Digital Platform Innovation. “Fans will be able to see holes No. 1 and 18 in an entirely new way, getting them closer to the action than ever before. Collaborating with AT&T to bring fans this exclusive experience represents a new way for the Tour to add value for sponsors and partners in the future.”

The PGA Tour first rolled out its augmented reality app in 2018. It allows fans to interact with 3D featured holes and live 3D shot trails on any flat surface in front of them. At featured holes throughout the season, they can choose a player on the course, compare shot trails from each round and different players. The 360-degree tee box is only available the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Live AR coverage with the app will be available during the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am from holes 1, 7 and 18 beginning with the opening round on Feb. 7.

Possible Mobile, part of the Possible creative agency, collaborated on the developed of the app and relied on data from ShotLink powered by CDW, the tour’s scoring system. That system captures and reports vital information on every shot in real time during tournaments.

The PGA Tour AR app is available for free in the App Store.

NEW YORK — When it comes to using cutting-edge broadcast technology to cover the 2018 PGA Tour, CBS Sports is going all-out to provide unique, insightful shoots of what’s happening on the course.

“Our philosophy is to use advanced technology to tell the story,” said Harold Bryant, CBS Sports’ executive producer/and senior vice president of production. “We also use it to teach the average golfer to improve their own game.” CBS Sports deploys this technology at various PGA Tour events, working out of the SSCBS mobile production unit equipped and operated by NEP.

SHOT TRACKING

It isn’t always easy for viewers to understand what’s happening on the fairways and the greens; especially when it comes to the shots being taken by golfers and how they play out.

To explain the process, CBS Sports uses Toptracer’s real-time ball tracking (“tracing”) system, which graphically portrays the ball’s trajectory, arc, and apex as it travels from golf club to ground.

[Read: Fox Sports Taps New Production Tech For U.S. Open Coverage]

CBS Sports has been using Toptracer onscreen for eight years, and has been enhancing its application for PGA coverage ever since.

Most recently, CBS combined Toptracer with ARL’s Virtual Eye technology and “ShotLink” shot-by-shot analytical data provided by the PGA Tour, to track the ball’s progress from an actual camera shot as well as via second-view animation showing it “flying over” the golf course. The second animated view — which is on the right side of the broadcast screen — includes ball speed, distance, and apex graphics on the screen in real-time.

“The animation looks so good, you can hardly tell the difference between it and the actual camera shot,” said Ken Aagaard, CBS Sports’ executive vice president, Innovation and New Technology.

READING THE GREEN

Every time a player approaches the cup, armchair golfers at home like to guess how they should putt the ball on the green.

CBS Sports hopes to help lessen the guesswork with “Green Reader” graphics software from Hawkeye (a Sony company). Green Reader is preloaded with a topographic 3D map of each green, and has the ability to calculate and display an onscreen “cone” showing the sweet spot for hitting the putt right. The network is currently experimenting with the technology.

“If you’re hitting it within this cone, there’s a good chance that you’re going to be in the hole or near the cup,” said Bryant. The only drawback for golfers is that they don’t have this graphic to refer to on the green. That advantage rests with CBS Sports’ viewers.

SLOWING DOWN WITH SWINGVISION

Since 2006, CBS Sports has been using high frame rate cameras to cover the shots in slow motion so that viewers can see for themselves how a golfer’s swing actually progressed. The feature — known as SwingVision — has won an Emmy.

“The enhanced color range of HDR really stands out; especially shooting in bright sunlight where SDR would provide washed-out images.” —Ken Aagaard

Typically, high-frame-rate cameras have operated at 4x real-time speed; shooting 120 frames per second vs. the standard 30fps used for broadcast.

But this wasn’t good enough for CBS Sports, which introduced a Sony 4800 16x960 fps camera at the June 2018 FedEx Cup that raised the frame rate to 16 times real-time speed, according to Aagaard. “Peter Kostis is really a whiz at describing a player’s swing, and when you see that swing using a high-frame-rate camera on SwingVision, you can see how accurate he is,” he said.

DON’T FORGET ON-COURSE TALENT

When it comes to on-course coverage from field reporters, the days of talent standing alone with their microphones are over; at least for CBS Sports and their PGA Tour coverage. When CBS Sports Reporter Amanda Balionis does live hits on the course, she has access to a 72-inch touchscreen computer mounted on a mobile golf cart known as the “SmartCart.” Like a TV studio meteorologist, Balionis can call up graphics, stats and footage on the fly.

“SmartCart makes you feel like you’re closer to the action,” said Bryant. “You can use it on site to call up golf swings and shot live to air — and then drive the cart to the next hole to keep up with the action.” CBS is the first U.S. broadcast network to use SmartCart, which it debuted in 2016.

4K/HDR, DRONES AND ATMOS

To cover golf in 4K/HDR for DirecTV’s 4K subscriber service, CBS Sports uses Sony HDC-4300 4K-capable cameras from the SSCBS mobile truck in 4K mode, giving the network valuable experience in using the technology.

Aagaard is more impressed with HDR than 4K.

“You can’t tell much of a difference between 1080p and 4K on side-by-side monitors,” he said. “But the enhanced color range of HDR really stands out; especially shooting in bright sunlight where SDR would provide washed-out images, but HDR shows a full range of shade and light levels.”

CBS Sports is also shooting pre-broadcast overhead shots using drones. “We don’t do this when there are people on the course,” Aagaard said.

As for audio, the network will begin testing Dolby’s Atmos “3D” audio capture system next month. “We were testing HDR two years ago, to stay ahead of the curve,” Aagaard said. “Same thing with Atmos; when it becomes popular with consumers, we’ll be ready.”

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PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLA. –The PGA Tour and Facebook have reached an agreement awarding the social media giant rights to distribute more than 60 hours of exclusive live coverage on Saturdays and Sundays from eight tournaments leading up to the FedExCup Playoffs for the 2017-18 season.

“We are thrilled to add Facebook to an already impressive lineup of global digital and broadcast partners,” said Chris Wandell, vice president, media business development of the PGA Tour.

[Read: PGA Tour Launches OTT Channel On Xumo]

The coverage, produced under the PGA Tour Live brand, will be distributed via Facebook Watch within the United States and is free of charge to viewers. Similar to the PGA Tour’s subscription OTT service, Facebook Watch coverage will follow two groups that tee off in the morning of the third and final rounds. Coverage will include interactive elements, such as fan questions and comments.

The agreement also covers on-demand programming, including tournament previews, round recaps and extended player highlights, which will be available in the United States on Facebook Watch and around the world via the PGA Tour Live show page.

Coverage via Facebook Watch will begin June 23rd and continue the next day at the Travelers Championship. Other 2018 events include: Quicken Loans National; A Military Tribute at The Greenbrier; John Deere Classic; RBC Canadian Open; World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational; Wyndham Championship; and The Northern Trust.

Typically, coverage from the tournaments will start at 8:30 a.m. ET and end at the beginning of Golf Channel’s lead-in coverage.

With the conclusion of coverage of the featured groups on Facebook Watch, PGA Tour Live featured holes coverage will be streamed worldwide on a non-exclusive basis on Facebook. 

NEW YORK — Discovery and the PGA Tour today announced a strategic alliance aimed at creating a multiplatform home for golf that will present fans around the world with access to exciting moments, players and championships.

“The long-term partnership between the PGA Tour and Discovery will create the new global home of golf, including delivering over 2,000 hours of live content year-round and this prestigious sport’s greatest moments, stories and athletes,” said David Zaslav, president and CEO, of Discovery.

The 12-year relationship, which begins next year, includes multiplatform live rights outside the United States, to all PGA Tour media properties, which account for about 2,000 hours of content per year, according to a joint announcement. Those properties include six tours operating under the PGA Tour umbrella and about 150 tournaments each year, including The Players Championship, the FedExCup Playoffs and the Presidents Cup.

[Read: Discovery to Shut London Playout Hub]

Discovery will spend more than $2 billion over 12 years to license PGA Tour international media rights and build a global OTT platform outside the United States. The alliance also covers linear rights in 220 markets and territories, it said.

“Following our successful first Olympic Games in PyeongChang, Discovery will contribute its strong global distribution and promotional infrastructure, in-market relationships, global sports expertise with direct-to-consumer platforms and brands to create a valuable new long-term home of golf offering in every market outside the U.S.,” said Zaslav.

The alliance will build a dedicated PGA Tour-branded OTT video streaming service, leveraging Discovery’s direct-to-consumer product and platform expertise, to be home to the Eurosport Player.

Discovery also will broadcast the PGA Tour on its pay-TV and free-to-air channels as well as digital and short-form platforms. It will work with PGA Tour to capture access to the action and leverage the non-live and library rights for all media platforms.

“This is an exciting next step for the PGA Tour, which presents a tremendous opportunity to accelerate and expand our media business outside the United States, better service our international broadcast partners, and drive fan growth with a deeply experienced strategic global partner,” said Jay Monahan, commissioner, PGA Tour.

More information is available on the PGA Tour website.

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PONTE VERDA BEACH, FLA.—The PGA Tour has added a new club to its bag for delivering content to its fans, as the organization has announced it is launching a live and video-on-demand OTT service through a partnership with Xumo.

The PGA Tour says that this is its first ad-supported OTT channel available on smart TVs and will provide both live and VOD programming. Content will include highlights/recaps, player interviews, tournament previews and live featured hole coverage from PGA Tour Live.

The channel is now available on LG’s Channel Plus service, powered by Xumo on channel IP-750, and across the Xumo distribution network, which includes Hisense, Sharp, Vizio and Panasonic connected devices.

PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLA.—The island green of the 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass is one of the most famous holes in golf, and now fans can get a new look at it through virtual reality. The PGA Tour and The Players Championship will present live 360 video and virtual reality of the 17th during the entire Players Championship, which runs from May 11-14.

The live VR experience will be available on Samsung Gear VR headsets through the PGA Tour VR Live app, which is available on the Oculus store. Intel is producing the VR coverage with Intel True VR technology. This will include three concurrent VR camera positions on the 17th tee, on the walkway from the tee box to the green and a camera mounted in the water next to the island green.

Fans without a VR headset can watch the 360 video on Twitter and Periscope through their smartphones.

According to the PGA Tour Chief Media Officer Rick Anderson, this is the first PGA Tour’s live virtual reality production. This will also be the first time Twitter has distributed live 360 video for a major sports event, per the PGA’s press release.

SAN FRANCISCO & PONTE VEDRA BEACH, FLA.—The PGA Tour has scored a birdie of a different kind with its new deal with Twitter to be the exclusive global platform to distribute free live competition coverage during the 2017 season. This deal comes as a result of the two organizations live streaming collaboration for the 2016 FedEx Cup Playoffs.

Starting with the Jan. 19 CareerBuilder Challenge, Twitter will be offering live streams of the first 60-90 minutes of early Thursday and Friday morning play on PGA Tour Live’s OTT subscription window. Coverage will include pre-game analysis, interviews, range coverage, and live competition from the first two holes of each day’s PGA Tour Live marquee groups. The season’s offering will conclude with the Tour Championship.

Live streams will be available for both logged-in and logged-out users on Twitter and connected devices. The streams can be found at PGATourLive.twitter.com and on @PGATour.

In addition, this new partnership includes an extension of the PGA Tour and Twitter’s Amplify program, which will see the PGA increase its highlight videos and regular content creation across Twitter and Periscope.