The PGA Tour is testing 3 new TV changes

Golf fans want change.

Golf fans the need change.

And the TV? TV is a good place to start.

For years, fans have been upset about the state of golf broadcasting. The reason? A series of counter-charges (but no less cardinal) against the golfing public. Depending on who you ask, the coverage is slow, fails to capture enough of the golf, or moves too quickly, focusing more on golf shots than compelling narrative. The coverage is too broad – it shows too many stories, but not enough appropriate one – even if it is very small, it fails to show more than the leaders. That’s about the only thing everyone who can agree that they are not happy … and that they are seeing too many ads.

This fall, the PGA Tour is trying to bring change with a new TV-focused audition program. The program, which will begin with the tournament on Friday afternoons airing on the Golf Channel during the fall season, aims to experiment with a number of possible changes to improve fan viewing.

Last week, at the Sanderson Farms Tournament, we got our first glimpse of the changes outlined by the Golf Channel, which many expect to arrive in the coming weeks. Below, we’ve rounded up three we’ve seen so far that we think you might notice.

1. Extended player interviews

The walk-and-talk is one of the most celebrated innovations of golf broadcasters in the last five years, and for good reason. After CBS confirmed Augusta National to participate in the talks during the ’23 Masters, it seems that technology is on its way to becoming a staple of our week-to-week golf watching lives.

That’s proven to be a no-brainer, as fewer big-name players are turning up for interviews as time goes on. In the fall, Golf Channel and the PGA Tour intend to revitalize interviews by expanding the player interview settings area, allowing a “designated interviewer” to talk to players on the course.

Big questions remain about what those conversations will generate for viewers at home. (After a kerfuffle with Mackenzie Hughes over a Q-and-A during the Genesis Invitational in February, the Tour put out a memo that players would only be asked about course development, and interviews would remain entirely voluntary.) Still, expanding into a strategy that more closely mirrors Sky Sports’ DP World Tour coverage would be a welcome development among fans.

2. Outdated cutting technique

For years, the Tour and its broadcast partners have used a classic system of “presumed lines” based on aggregate points during Friday rounds, as statistics that can more accurately predict the cut line have grown in popularity.

At Sanderson Farms, however, the Golf Channel tried an analytical approach to cutting assumptions. The network also changed its coverage and image treatment to focus entirely on players grinding to get into the weekend, and staying on the air late into the evening until the cut.

The changes represent a small but meaningful shift in Friday afternoon coverage – and a new answer to the age-old question of how to deal with low ratings on Friday evenings.

3. Reducing concentration

We can argue if the Golf Channel’s “Near the Pin” focus on Sanderson Farms’ 13th was ultimately a plus for the network. (The common social media pessimism about networking/“Going For It” noises can indicate the opposite.) But the general strategy of tightening focus during the early rounds of a particular hole or hole expansion seems to make sense, especially if you’re forecasting going forward. at some of the more notable resorts like TPC Sawgrass or the Riviera.

This idea may not be a long-term keeper for the Golf Channel, but with the move to Utah for the first Black Desert Championship to be played in a much better-looking tournament host, the strategy may seem more logical.

1 change will NOT be attempted

The biggest change golf fans want — fewer commercials — likely won’t be available during PGA Tour Friday telecasts this fall. The reasons for this are many and few: The PGA Tour has signed a broadcast rights agreement that requires a certain number of commercials to be shown during each broadcast.

While it’s nice to think about a life with fewer plays and distractions, it’s unlikely we’ll see any meaningful changes to these endings at least until the end of the decade, when the latest set of touring rights deals with NBC and CBS expire.

The good news is that networks like CBS have shown us that it is possible to improve the quality of golf broadcasts within the confines of the Tour’s commercial structure. The bad news is, for fans hoping to see the future of golf TV, well, more golfthose developments will have to wait.

James Colgan

Golf.com Editor

James Colgan is a news editor and features on GOLF, writing articles for websites and magazines. He manages Hot Mic, the GOLF media stand, and applies his camera knowledge to all product platforms. Before joining GOLF, James graduated from Syracuse University, where he was a caddy (and atute looper) scholarship recipient on Long Island, where he hails from. He can be reached at james.colgan@golf.com.