FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, October 7th, 2014

GOLF CHANNEL TOURNAMENT AIR TIMES & NOTES (OCT. 9-12)

2014-15 PGA TOUR Season Kicks Off As Walker Defends at Frys.com Open

Langer Headlines the Field at SAS Championship with only three events remaining

before Champions Tour’s Charles Schwab Cup Championship

Thompson Defends at Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia

Lynn Defends at Portugal Masters

 

ORLANDO, Fla. (Oct. 7, 2014) – The 2014-15 PGA TOUR season gets underway this week on the West Coast with the Frys.com Open. Jimmy Walker defends his 2013 title, the first of three victories he accumulated on the PGA TOUR last season. Golf Channel on NBC analyst Johnny Miller is part-owner of the tournament’s host venue, Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa, Calif., and Miller was chosen as the 2014 Frys.com Open tournament honoree. Miller’s son Andy also received a sponsor’s exemption to be in the field this week. The Champions Tour stages the first of two consecutive events in the state of North Carolina with the SAS Championship. Charles Schwab Cup leader Bernhard Langer headlines the field with only three events remaining for players to position themselves in the top-30 point standings to be eligible to compete in the season-culminating Charles Schwab Cup Championship. Lexi Thompson defends her 2013 title at the Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia, while David Lynn defends at the European Tour’s Portugal Masters.

 

PGA TOUR

Frys.com Open
Dates: Oct. 9-12

Venue: Silverado Resort and Spa, Napa, Calif.

Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):

Thursday          5-8 p.m. (Live) / 8:30-11:30 p.m. (Replay)

Friday              5-8 p.m. (Live) / 8:30-11:30 p.m. (Replay)

Saturday           5-8 p.m. (Live) / 8:30-11:30 p.m. (Replay)

Sunday             5-8 p.m. (Live) / 8:30-11:30 p.m. (Replay)

Broadcast Notes:

New season begins: The 2014-15 PGA TOUR season kicks off this week from Napa, Calif. with the Frys.com Open. This week marks the first of 47 official events during the 2014-15 season schedule, with seven of those being played during the 2014 calendar year.

Miller in the spotlight: Golf Channel on NBC analyst Johnny Miller is part-owner of the tournament’s host venue, Silverado Resort and Spa in Napa, Calif. Miller was chosen as the 2014 Frys.com Open tournament honoree, and in addition his son Andy received a sponsor’s exemption to be in the field this week.

Lyle in the field after Monday qualifying: Jarrod Lyle carded a bogey-free 66 during yesterday’s Monday qualifier to get into this week’s Frys.com Open field. The Aussie has beaten leukemia twice and previously announced plans to return to the PGA TOUR at next week’s Shriners Hospitals for Children Open on a sponsor’s exemption before qualifying this week. Lyle needs to earn $283,825 to earn his PGA TOUR card through his major medical extension.

Finau makes PGA TOUR debut: Tony Finau, one of “the 25” graduates from the 2014 Web.com Tour is in the field this week as a PGA TOUR 2014-15 rookie. A competitor on Golf Channel’s Big Break Disney Golf, Finau finished T-3 with fellow PGA TOUR player and Big Break alum Tommy Gainey in last week’s inaugural Big Break Invitational Reynolds Plantation in Lake Oconee, Ga.
Walker defends:
Jimmy Walker won by two shots over Vijay Singh for the first of three PGA TOUR victories that he accumulated in the early stages of the 2013-14 PGA TOUR season.

Headlining the field: Jimmy Walker, Matt Kuchar, Hunter Mahan, Lee Westwood, Hideki Matsuyama, Chesson Hadley, Jonas Blixt, Vijay Singh, Davis Love III and Jarrod Lyle.

Golf Channel Broadcast Team

Play by Play: Terry Gannon

Analyst: Peter Oosterhuis

Tower: Matt Gogel

On Course: Roger Maltbie / Jerry Foltz / Phil Parkin

 

CHAMPIONS TOUR

SAS Championship
Dates: Oct. 10-12

Venue: Prestonwood Country Club, Cary, N.C.

Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):

Friday              2:30-5 p.m. (Live) / 3-5 a.m. (Saturday replay)

Saturday           2:30-5 p.m. (Live) / 3-5 a.m. (Sunday replay)

Sunday             2:30-5 p.m. (Live) / Midnight-2:30 a.m. (Monday replay)

Broadcast Notes:

First of two consecutive events in North Carolina: This week’s SAS Championship will mark the first of two straight events on the Champions Tour to be contested in the Tar Heel state, as the Tour stages the Greater Hickory Kia Classic at Rock Barn in Conover next week.

Three events remain in Race for Charles Schwab Cup: There are three events left on the Champions Tour schedule prior to the season-ending Charles Schwab Cup Championship at Desert Mountain Club in Scottsdale, Ariz. Players hoping to qualify for the season-culminating event will need to position themselves within the top-30 of the Schwab Cup point standings over the course of the final three events on the schedule leading into the Schwab Cup Championship.

Cochran defends: Russ Cochran edged out David Frost by one stroke for his fifth career Champions Tour win, and second of the 2013 season.

Headlining the field: Bernhard Langer, Colin Montgomerie, Nick Faldo, Kenny Perry, Rocco Mediate, Corey Pavin, Peter Jacobsen, Gary Koch, Lee Janzen, John Cook and Russ Cochran.

Golf Channel Broadcast Team:

Play by Play: Brian Hammons

Analyst: Lanny Wadkins

Tower: Dave Marr / John Mahaffey

On Course: Billy Ray Brown

 

LPGA TOUR

Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia

Dates: Oct. 9-12

Venue: Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club (West Course), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):

Wednesday      11 p.m.-3 a.m. (Live) / 1-3 p.m. (Thursday replay)

Thursday          11:30 p.m.-3 a.m. (Live)

Friday              11:30 p.m.-3 a.m. (Live) / 5-8 a.m. (Saturday replay)

Saturday          11:30 p.m.-3 a.m. (Live) / 5-8:30 a.m. (Sunday replay)

Broadcast Notes:

International swing continues: The Sime Darby LPGA Malaysia is the second of seven consecutive LPGA Tour events to be played outside of the United States, and the 75-player field features no cut.

Thompson defends: Lexi Thompson finished four shots ahead of Shanshan Feng in 2013 for her second-career LPGA Tour victory at the time. Her final-round 69 contributed to Thompson setting the new tournament 72-hole scoring record.

Headlining the field: Stacy Lewis, Suzann Pettersen, Lexi Thompson, Karrie Webb, Na Yeon Choi, Shanshan Feng, Anna Nordqvist, So Yeon Ryu, Lydia Ko, Jessica Korda and Gerina Piller.

Golf Channel Broadcast Team:

Studio Host: Mike Ritz

Play by Play: Peter Donegan

Analyst: Sandy Mackenzie / Kate Burton

 

EUROPEAN TOUR

Portugal Masters
Dates: Oct. 9-12

Venue: Oceanico Victoria Golf Course, Vilamoura, Portugal

Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):

Thursday          6:30-8:30 a.m. / 10 a.m.-1 p.m. (Live)

Friday              6:30-8:30 a.m. / 10 a.m.-1 p.m. (Live)

Saturday           8 a.m.-Noon (Live)

Sunday            8:30 a.m.-1 p.m. (Live)

Broadcast Notes:

Lynn defends: David Lynn finished one shot ahead of Justin Walters to earn his second-career European Tour victory, and his first since the 2004 KLM Open.

Headlining the field: Darren Clarke, Padraig Harrington, Matteo Manassero, Paul McGinley, Francesco Molinari, Jose Maria Olazabal, Peter Uihlein, Tommy Fleetwood and David Lynn.

Golf Channel Broadcast Team:

Play by Play: Dougie Donnelly

Analyst: Ken Brown

On Course: Jay Townsend

-NBC Sports Group-