FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, September 3rd, 2014
NBC SPORTS GROUP TOURNAMENT AIRTIMES & NOTES (SEPTEMBER 4 – 7)
NBC Sports Group Airing Nearly 25 Hours of Live Tournament Coverage of the BMW Championship in Denver
Web.com Tour Finals Continue with Chiquita Classic in North Carolina
Janzen Making Champions Tour Debut at Quebec Championship
European Ryder Cup Team Member Bjorn Defends at Omega European Masters
ORLANDO, Fla. (September 2, 2014) – NBC Sports Group will televise nearly 25 hours of tournament coverage at the BMW Championship this week from Cherry Hills Country Club outside of Denver. Golf Channel will air early round coverage on Thursday and Friday, and lead-in coverage on Saturday and Sunday ahead of NBC’s broadcast of the third and final rounds. Golf Channel’s Spotlight Coverage will continue this week, focusing on holes 16-18 at Cherry Hills to complement NBC’s broadcast on Saturday and Sunday. Golf Central also will originate on-site from Cherry Hills to preview and recap the day’s tournament coverage, and will feature David Duval as a guest analyst. The Web.com Tour Finals continues this week with the Chiquita Classic, the second of four events that will culminate with the Web.com Tour Championship later this month. Two-time U.S. Open champion and eight-time PGA TOUR winner Lee Janzen will make his Champions Tour debut this week at the Quebec Championship, while the European Tour is in Switzerland for the Omega European Masters.
PGA TOUR
BMW Championship
Dates: Sept. 4-7
Venue: Cherry Hills Country Club, Cherry Hills Village, Colo.
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 4-8 p.m. (Live) / 8:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. (Replay)
Friday 4-8 p.m. (Live) / 8:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. (Replay)
Saturday 1-3 p.m. (Live) / 9:30 p.m.-2:30 a.m. (Replay)
Sunday Noon-2 p.m. (Live) / 9:30 p.m.-2:30 a.m. (Replay)
Tournament Airtimes On NBC (Eastern):
Saturday 3-6 p.m. (Live)
Sunday 2-6 p.m. (Live)
Golf Channel Spotlight Coverage (Eastern):
Saturday 3-5 p.m. (Live)
Sunday 2-5 p.m. (Live)
Broadcast Notes:
NBC Sports Group airing nearly 25 hours of live tournament coverage: NBC Sports Group will dedicate nearly 25 hours of live tournament coverage to the BMW Championship. Golf Channel will air early round coverage on Thursday and Friday, as well as early coverage on Saturday and Sunday leading into NBC’s broadcast of the third and final rounds. Players within the top-70 of the current FedExCup standings choosing to play this week will have the opportunity to qualify for the top-30 in the standings by week’s end to gain entry into the field at next week’s TOUR Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta.
Golf Channel’s Spotlight Coverage continues: Golf Channel’s Spotlight Coverage continues this week, focusing on holes 16-18 at Cherry Hills while complementing NBC’s live, third- and final-round coverage. Spotlight Coverage is enhanced for 2014, featuring a reverse-L on-screen graphic displaying continuous stats and player updates. Coverage will be highlighted by special production elements, including Pro Tracer, which uses graphics to track the flight of the ball in real time; and TrackMan, a technology that measures club-head speed, ball speed and carry distance.
Duval joins Golf Central on-site from Cherry Hills: Golf Central, the network’s signature evening news program will air live from a dedicated set at Cherry Hills Country Club to preview and recap the day’s coverage. Former world-number-one player David Duval will serve as a guest analyst during the network’s on-site coverage throughout the week. Kelly Tilghman (host), Brandel Chamblee (analyst), Arron Oberholser (analyst) and Steve Burkowski (reporter) also will offer insight and analysis on the latest storylines surrounding the BMW Championship.
Johnson defends: Zach Johnson finished two shots ahead of Nick Watney at Conway Farms near Chicago in last year’s event, earning his 10th career PGA TOUR victory at the time.
Headlining the field: Rory McIlroy, Adam Scott, Henrik Stenson, Sergio Garcia, Justin Rose, Jason Day, Jim Furyk, Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson, Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler.
NBC / Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Play by Play: Rich Lerner (Golf Channel) / Dan Hicks (NBC)
Analyst: Frank Nobilo (Golf Channel) / Johnny Miller (NBC)
Tower: Gary Koch / Peter Jacobsen
On Course: Roger Maltbie / Mark Rolfing / Notah Begay
Interviews: Steve Sands
Golf Channel Spotlight Coverage Broadcast Team:
Play by Play: Tom Abbott
Analyst: Curt Byrum
On Course: Phil Parkin / Scott McCarron
Golf Central on-site Broadcast Team:
Host: Kelly Tilghman
Analyst: Brandel Chamblee / Arron Oberholser
Guest Analyst: David Duval
Reporter: Steve Burkowski
WEB.COM TOUR
Chiquita Classic
Dates: Sept. 4-7
Venue: River Run Country Club, Davidson, N.C.
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 12:30-3:30 p.m. (Live)
Friday 1:30-3:30 p.m. (Live)
Saturday 5-7 p.m. (Live)
Sunday 5-7 p.m. (Live)
Broadcast Notes:
Web.com Tour Finals continue: The Chiquita Classic is the second of four Web.com Tour Finals events. The field is made up of players ranked 26-100 on the Web.com Tour season-long money list, along with players ranked 126-200 in the PGA TOUR FedExCup standings who are competing for 25 PGA TOUR cards for the 2014-15 season. Members of “The 25” – those Web.com Tour players already having secured their PGA TOUR cards for 2014-15 also are eligible to compete in the Web.com Tour Finals to try and better position themselves on the PGA TOUR priority list for qualifying to get into tournament fields.
Headlining the field: Trevor Immelman, Ben Curtis, J.J. Henry, Bud Cauley, Tim Herron, Heath Slocum, Y.E. Yang, Chad Campbell, Colt Knost, Greg Owen and Sam Saunders.
Golf Channel Broadcast Team
Play by Play: Whit Watson
Analyst: Craig Perks
Tower: Phil Blackmar
On Course: Kay Cockerill / Rich Beem
CHAMPIONS TOUR
Quebec Championship
Dates: Sept. 5-7
Venue: La Tempete Golf Club, Quebec City, Canada
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Friday 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. (Live)
Saturday 7-9 p.m. (Tape delay) / (Live streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Sunday 7-9 p.m. (Tape delay) / (Live streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Broadcast Notes:
Janzen making Champions Tour debut: Two-time U.S. Open champion and eight-time PGA TOUR winner Lee Janzen makes his debut this week on the over-50 circuit. Janzen will be among one of Golf Channel’s marquee groups during live opening round coverage on Friday from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. ET.
Toledo defends: Esteban Toledo defeated Kenny Perry on the third playoff hole in 2013 for his second-career Champions Tour win.
Headlining the field: Mark Calcavecchia, Fred Funk, Jay Haas, John Cook, Corey Pavin, Brad Faxon, Chip Beck, Hale Irwin, Lee Janzen, Scott Hoch and Sandy Lyle.
Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Play by Play: Brian Hammons
Analyst: Lanny Wadkins
Tower: Dave Marr / John Mahaffey
On Course: Billy Ray Brown
EUROPEAN TOUR
Omega European Masters
Dates: Sept. 4-7
Venue: Crans-sur-Sierre Golf Club (Severiano Ballesteros Course), Crans Montana, Switzerland
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 5:30-7:30 a.m. / 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Live)
Friday 5:30-7:30 a.m. / 9:30-11:30 a.m. (Live)
Saturday 7-11 a.m. (Live)
Sunday 6-11 a.m. (Live)
Broadcast Notes:
Bjorn defends: Thomas Bjorn beat Craig Lee on the first playoff hole for his 14th career European Tour victory.
Headlining the field: Thomas Bjorn, Jamie Donaldson, Victor Dubuisson, Darren Clarke, Matthew Fitzpatrick, Padraig Harrington, Miguel Angel Jimenez and Matteo Manassero.
Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Studio Host: Mike Ritz
Play by Play: Dominik Holyer
Analyst: Ken Brown
On Course: Julian Tutt