U.S. Open Week Television Coverage

As an avid golf fan, this time of year is exciting to me. It is U.S. Open Week! On Thursday the players will be teeing off on a quest to become the 113th winner of the U.S. Open (well, if the weather holds out...)

At the beginning of the week, coverage of the U.S. Open started. In total the Golf Channel and NBC will be delivering over 70 hours of coverage for the tournament. Included in the coverage is news, live chats, features, highlights, live coverage and more. The Golf Channel will have about 56 hours of coverage and NBC will have about 19 hours.

Included in the Golf Channel's coverage will be Live From the U.S. Open which will air before and after live coverage to show highlights and bring any breaking news stories. A popular Golf Channel show, The Golf Fix, will also be airing from the driving range of Merion. The Golf Channel will also be airing a feature titled "1971 U.S. Open: Lee Trevino an American Champion." This documentary will look at Trevino's shocking victory over Jack Nicklaus in the 1971 U.S. Open at Merion.

NBC's coverage will focus on live action. NBC plans to bring live U.S. Open coverage on Thursday and Friday from 3:00pm to 5:00pm. On Saturday and Sunday coverage is expected to take place from 12:00pm to 7:30pm. For NBC it will be interesting to see how many viewers tune in. Last year's U.S. Open saw final round coverage that earned a 6.6 overnight rating. This was up 29 percent from the final round of 2011. The increase in viewership last year can be somewhat contributed to the location of the tournament. The U.S. Open's that take place on the west coast (like last year) typically see higher television ratings because of the ability to broadcast in primetime on the east coast.

Final Thought
As a golf fan any major is exciting. This year brings a little extra excitement because they are playing so close to home. All I can ask for is an exciting tournament that has my eyes glued to the television on Sunday afternoon.... A Tiger victory would be nice too.

@dmrosen7

Dollars & Sense - PGA Tour is Thriving

Tiger Woods has not won a major since 2008, but the PGA Tour is thriving financially and in the area of sponsorship stability.  The transition from the years of Woods’ dominance to an era of much more competitive balance was an intriguing one for the Tour with fluctuating television ratings and an overall confusion on how to continue reaching the younger demographics.  Rory McIlroy is a great player and one worthy of grabbing the proverbial torch, but he certainly has a long way to go to reach the golden-Woods standard.

According Michael Smith’s article “Title sponsors in hand, PGA Tour eyes digital international growth” in this week’s Sports Business Journal, the PGA Tour has sold all but one of its tournament title sponsors.  45 of 46 ain’t too bad.  The lone tournament without a title sponsor is the Tampa Bay Championship held from March 14-17 at Innisbrook Resort.  Transition Optical was the previous title sponsor but was the only company out of 11 not to renew their deal.

The most sought after title sponsor ships are those for tournaments that are televised on either CBS or NBC as opposed to the Golf Channel.  Sponsorship for these types of events runs for $6 million to $8 million per year.  Part of this money goes to the television network and part of this money goes directly to the tournament.  Tournament money could potentially go toward paying the exorbitant purses.  The title sponsor-less Tampa Bay Championship has a total purse of $5.5 million with last year’s winner, Luke Donald, taking home $990,000 of it according to the PGA Tour schedule.

Furthermore on the PGA Tour’s stable sponsorship assets is the fact that only Hyundai’s title sponsorship deal expires after the 2013 season.  With FedEx’s recently extended deal, Web.com signing on as the sponsor of the old Nationwide Tour, and broadcast deals with CBS and NBC that run reportedly through 2021, the PGA Tour is able to leverage their current deals further and look for a product more global in nature.

Aided by the established World Golf Championship events including the uniqueness of the Accenture Match Play Championship, the PGA Tour has been looking towards global growth for a while.  Now with PGA Tour Canada under their control and a new tour in Latin America, the PGA Tour continues its expansion

. 

Digital media growth is what ultimately caught eye with the article because typically when you think golf, you think older generations and older generations are not particularly digital media savvy.  Here are a few key digital media points that the PGA Tour is doing in the upcoming season:

-          - Streamlined Apps – Currently apps are on a tournament by tournament basis, but with the PGA Tour undertaking a single aggregated platform, apps will have much greater consistent quality.

-         -  Internet Simulcasts – The PGA Tour plans to simulcast CBS, NBC, and Golf Channel broadcasts on their website as an added viewing platform in hopes to add sellable advertising inventory and drive site traffic.

-          - Digital Division Growth – After taking over control of their digital division from Turner Sports, the PGA Tour looks to grow their digital division and expand on Turner’s successes.

(Quick aside on golf television broadcasts: Golf is often criticized by its haters for being slow and boring, even on television.  Personally, I think that assumption is way off base.  Golf broadcast productions always bring the viewer straight to the action.  How often do you see a guy walking the fairway as opposed to hitting a shot in the middle of a round?  Virtually never.  Golf broadcasts have an element of NFL Red Zone to them that was there before the thought of NFL Red Zone was even conceived.)

The PGA Tour is in an incredible position going forward.  In the United States we have seen unrest and instability in our major sports over the past few years.  Golf and the PGA Tour has remained strong.  Just imagine what a dominant American-born player could do for television ratings!

(Read the SBJ Original Article)

Follow Kevin Rossi on Twitter @kevin_rossi.

14 Year Old to Play at the Masters

When I heard the possibility that 14-year-old, Guan Tianlang, had a chance to qualify for the Masters I did not believe it. 14. That is hard to believe. Guan's win at the Asia-Pacific Amateur Championship qualified him for the Masters. The age of players playing professional golf keeps getting younger and younger but it is unexpected to most that an eight grader would have the opportunity to play in one of the most prestigious golf tournament in the world.

Guan Tianlang

Guan will be the youngest player to play in a major by a month. Last summer at the US Open, Andy Zhang who was also 14 teed it up with the best in the world. The youth in golf is hard to believe but it is a good sign for the game. Many wonder where the future of golf is heading especially with recent struggles of Tiger Woods. The more talented youth in the game will make the sport more competitive and keep viewers watching.

Andy Zhang

Tiger was the clear catalyst for the popularity in the game of golf. With young talented players coming into the game, it is difficult not to watch them on TV. For many who play golf recreationally, it is nearly impossible to image someone at the age of 14 being able to compete with the best golfers in the world. That fact will make people want to watch.

Another positive from young golfers playing professionally is the impact on the demographics of the game. Many consider golf to be a sport that is only played recreationally by older individuals. If kids have golfers they can look up to that are only a few years older than them, they are more likely to go and try to play the game themselves.

Final Thought
For all the positives that come out of young talented golfers, we must be careful on possible negatives. Guan is obviously extremely talented, but he is only 125 pounds. Therefore he can drive the ball only a mere 250 yards. At many challenging professional golf course, that will cause trouble. The last thing that golf wants is to put young men on national TV on the biggest stage and embarrass them. Although these golfers must have extreme confidence to make it to the point where they are, it is difficult to imagine what one horrendous tournament can do to someones confidence. That being said, I can't wait to watch Guan at the Masters.

 @dmrosen7

Ryder Cup Recap

When the leaderboard is tight on a Sunday afternoon at the Masters, there isn't anything more exciting in golf. Or so I thought. While watching the Ryder Cup on Sunday those same emotions felt during the last day of a major tournament were present. I was excited and nervous as the Europeans closed the gap.

The result of the tournament was unfortunate as a fan of the American squad, yet the overall tournament excitement made the result bearable. I was hoping to see, like many other fans, Tiger Woods' 18th hole to have meaning. Unfortunately, Martin Kaymer made a clutch putt on the 18th versus Steve Stricker to seal the deal for the Europeans.

Many people will question some of the decisions made by the captain of the U.S. team, David Love III. Many will say that Love's captains picks were questionable, a group that included Stricker and Furyk. Some will say that Love messed up the Saturday afternoon session when he sat a hot Keegan Bradley and Phil Mickelson duo in favor of a struggling Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker. All of these arguments can be made, but at the end of the day the U.S. blew a significant lead and the true fault for the loss lies on the players.

The Ryder Cup has a much different feel than any other tournament. In most golf tournaments, personal pride is on the line and a nice sum of money. The Ryder Cup is played for national pride. The best golfers in the United States represent our country in hopes of bringing the Cup to the U.S. When it comes to big money prizes for the players, you won't find it at the Ryder Cup. There is no money to be won in the tournament.

Final Thought

Although I was upset that the U.S. didn't win the Ryder Cup, the story on the European side was quite remarkable. After being down 10 to 6 going into the Sunday singles matches, the European's needed a huge Sunday to retain the cup. It took a full effort from everyone on the European side to pull off the remarkable upset. In the back of all the European's minds while playing had to be the Steve Ballesteros story. Ballesteros tragically died in May of 2011 from a brain tumor, and the Europeans were playing in his honor. With Steve Ballesteros on the Europeans sleeves, they pulled off the unthinkable. Truly a good story.





 @dmrosen7 

Tiger Earns $100 Million

With Tiger Woods third place finish in the Deutsche Bank Championship he earned $544,000. This win pushed his career earnings on the PGA tour to over $100 million, $100,350,700 to be exact. Tiger has been the face of golf for many years, and it is not surprising that he is the first man to ever earn $100 million on the golf course.

The dominance of Tiger Woods against people playing in his era, can be viewed not only through wins, but through money earned. After Tiger, next on the list is Phil Mickelson who has earned nearly $67 million. Although a nice amount of money, Phil is nearly $30 million behind Tiger.

The era of golf in which Tiger has played has a lot to do with the enormous amount of career earnings. Sam Snead is the career leader in PGA Tour wins with 82. Snead's career earnings were $620,126. Sam Snead started his career in 1937 and money in golf was no where near the value of todays game. Snead's most earnings in an individual tournament was in 1968 when he came in second place in Milwaukee. He earned only $28,000 in that tournament. Tiger Woods has won $1 million dollars or more 38 different times.

The huge increase in dollars for the game of golf can be attributed to Tiger. When Tiger entered the sport as a professional, he brought with him huge crowds to the tournaments and big crowds watching on TV. Tiger spoke on the time of golf in which he played, "I won fewer tournaments than Sam Snead has, but obviously he was in a different era. It's just that we happened to time it up right and happened to play well when the purses really had a nice spike up."

Tiger is currently in contention of winning his third FedEx Cup. The FedEx Cup bonus pays $10 million. The two times that Tiger previously won the FedEx Cup, have not counted toward his career earnings.

Final Thought
It is no surprise to anyone that Tiger Woods has earned a lot of money playing golf. His dominance has been clearly witnessed by any golf fan. I think the $100 million dollar milestone is just another remarkable achievement by Tiger. His career earnings is only a fraction of the total amount he has earned because of golf. Endorsement money for Tiger Woods is in the hundreds of millions. Whether or not people like Tiger because of his off the course drama is up to them, yet there is no denying what he has accomplished on the golf course is truly amazing. As for the rest of Tigers career.... he might not be done just yet.

@dmrosen7

Augusta Makes the Change

What could be considered the most private golf club in the world, Augusta National Golf Club, made a big change to their membership. Over the past 80 years, Augusta National has failed to open its membership to women. This has changed. Former Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, and South Carolina businesswoman, Daria Moore, have been admitted to Augusta.

Augusta is best known for its privacy and for one of the four major golf tournaments it holds every year, the Masters. The Masters has an exclusivity to it that no other tournament can match. In the current days of huge television deals, and obnoxious amounts of sponsors. The Masters have kept their business with an enormous amount of privacy. Augusta only has three sponsors for the Masters. They include IBM, Exxon and AT&T. Augusta also tells CBS how much Masters coverage they can have and limit the commercials. Augusta allows four minutes of commercials per hour. This is four times less than any other tournament.

Augusta further proves its little care toward potential revenue dollars, with concession prices. Although it may seem like a small thing, $1 for cookies and coffee can't be beat. The seemingly care free attitude that is exhibited by Augusta when it comes to revenue has a deeper meaning. The lack of care puts the idea of admitting women to the golf club in perspective. Most companies give into social uproar because of finances. If customers don't approve of a companies decisions, the company risks losing customers. Augusta did not make the move because of social pressures.

An uproar came about recently when IBM promoted Virginia Rometty to CEO. Traditionally IBM CEO's were offered membership to Augusta. Virginia was the first female CEO for IBM, so Augusta was feeling pressure from the outside to extend her an invite. Augusta National Chairman Billy Payne did not give in, constantly saying that he would not talk about membership issues. Time will tell now if she gets in.

Final Thought
Augusta for years would constantly flex their muscles when it came to membership. The refusal to allow women to be members was a sticking point for many years. The change they made will not reflect a financial move, rather a move that is long overdue.


 @dmrosen7

PGA Championship Preview

Although Kiawah Island is only 10 miles long and no more than 1.5 miles wide, the small island on the shores of South Carolina is set to host the PGA Championship this weekend. 

Kiawah Island’s small stature has proven to be a major obstacle at the PGA Tour’s final major.  Because of the lack of size, the PGA Tour had to limit ticket sales to around 25,000 per day.  When volunteers, course workers, media are factored in, the island will be forced to hold and transport about 30,000 people per day.  With one single two lane road to do so, there could potentially be major complications.  The course and the PGA Tour have worked on a comprehensive plan that should combat the issue.  According to Sports Business Journal, the course staff can park 1,600 cars per hour at maximum efficiency and they expect a traffic flow of about 1,400-1,500 at peak hours.  It’s going to be tough, but it could be done.

The PGA Tour’s final major will surely be a popular one with the season winding down and Tiger Woods coming in as the odds-on favorite to win.  Keegan Bradley looks to defend his 2011 PGA Championship crown while carrying the momentum of winning the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational last weekend at Firestone.  Although it is great to have Keegan Bradley with momentum coming into the tournament, the PGA Championship’s TV ratings will be driven by Tiger Woods’ place in the field per usual.  You can bet the house that TNT and CBS executives will be cheering hard for Tiger to at least be in the hunt on Sunday and throughout.

The PGA Championship will be played at The Ocean Course; a beautiful 7676 yard par 72 course located along the shores of the Atlantic Ocean.  Players could potentially face huge challenges with rain and wind.  This coming weekend will see a 40% chance of thunderstorms everyday and could experience some heavier wind gusts.

With the smaller ticket allotment, the high demand allowed the PGA Tour to charge premium prices for tickets.  Friday, Saturday, and Sunday single day tickets are sold out and single day Thursday tickets are $125.  A four day Championship Round ticket will get you access to all 4 days of competition but will run you $500.  For the more corporate tournament goers, there are one day Champions Club tickets for $700 with a 4 day Champions Club pass for $2700. 

Boasting a purse of $8,000,000 last year, Keegan Bradley took home $1,445,000 of that purse cashing in on a beautiful 4 day display of golf.  If we see anything like the battle between Bradley and Jason Dufner from last year, then the golf world is surely in for a treat regardless of whether Tiger Woods in the mix or not. 

Although it may be the least prestigious of the 4 PGA Tour majors, the PGA Championship is nothing to ignore.  The PGA Championship is hosted by one of the most beautiful course in America at The Ocean Club, and that southern hospitality will surely be felt. 

Tune in to TNT at 1 pm tomorrow to catch the start of the television coverage of the PGA Championship.  The final round will be broadcasted on CBS from 2-7pm on Sunday.  Don’t miss out on the PGA Tour’s last major of the year.

--Information from PGATour.com, Weather Channel, Sports Business Journal, PGAChampionship.com, KiawahIsland.com

Pick Up the Pace!

Alright…

OK…

Wait, no…

Ahh…

OK…here we…

Ugh…

GO!

Kevin Na at The Players Championship

Sorry about that, took a minute, but I’m ready to go now! I just had to go through my pre-writing routine quick.  It’s kind of annoying, I know, I get the same feeling whenever I watch professional golf (or at least attempt to watch).

If you’ve ever watched a golfer just before he (or she) takes a swing, you’ve probably noticed the obsessive compulsive-esque pre-shot routines they each respectively go through. As if the pace of golf wasn’t slow enough, pre-shot routines are dragging out play even more. In a sport that is already calm-mannered, and tedious, further slowing the pace in any way risks dulling the entertainment that golf provides viewers. Bottom line, it hurts the sport.

Pre-shot routines typically go something like this…waggle, waggle, step up, half-swing, step back, re-grip, waggle, practice swing, step up, waggle, half-swing…If you’re anything like me, you find yourself sitting there saying, “Come on already, just hit it!”

Throughout the existence of the PGA and LPGA, slow play and pre-shot routines have been perpetual issues. Earlier this month, the age-old discussion was ignited once again, when PGA golfer Kevin Na and LPGA golfer Morgan Pressel caused a stir on mainstages of their respective associations.

At The Players Championship, PGA golfer Kevin Na was scrutinized for his painfully slow play, which included a lengthy pre-shot routine and intentionally whiffing shots just to re-set (if you don’t know what I’m talking about, just watch this video). Fortunately for Na, he wasn’t penalized, but the criticism poured in from the likes of fans, media, and fellow golfers. Na later recognized his struggles saying, per USA Today, “There’s no point in trying to cover anything up. You could see I was having problems.” He also explained that following his sluggish performance at The Players, he has taken time to adjust his routine. By his own count, he has cut the routine down to only 15 seconds (uhm, yay?).

As for LPGA golfer Morgan Pressel, her slow play at the Sybase Match Play Championship resulted in a far worse outcome. Pressel was cited for slow play by rules officials, which caused her to lose a hole that she thought she had won. The penalty ultimately cost her a first place finish as well. It was a tough loss and Pressel made it pretty clear that she disagreed. Referencing Azahara Munoz’s first place finish, “…she was definitely slower than I was,” declared Pressel. (side note: the last slow play penalty assessed in the PGA was about two decades ago)

Let’s admit it, Pressel has a good point. The vast majority of golfers play slow and almost no one is cited or penalized for slow play. While there are rules in place, the application of such rules seems to be fairly arbitrary. Professional golf has a very obvious problem that has persisted for far too long. Something has to be done before the sport suffers even more than it has already. If the fact that Na, a golfer who was not penalized, felt enough of a problem to make an adjustment to quicken his play on his own, and the fact that Pressel was penalized when plenty of others played as slow as, or slower, than herself isn’t enough to make you think the sport has a problem…how about these remarks from the most prolific golfer the sport has ever seen…

“I certainly think we need to speed up play…I certainly can see there being some type of adaption somewhere. There’s got to be some kind of change.” –Tiger Woods

@sethbreeden