FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, September 15th, 2015

NBC Sports Group Tournament Airtimes & Notes (Sept. 17-20): BMW Championship, Solheim Cup, Small Business Connection Championship at River Run, Italian Open

FedExCup Playoffs Continue Outside of Chicago with BMW Championship

Solheim Cup Pits U.S. vs. Europe in Biennial International Competition

Second Leg of Web.com Tour Finals Stages

Small Business Connection Championship at River Run

Kaymer, Jimenez Headline the Field at the Italian Open

ORLANDO, Fla. (Sept. 15, 2015) – The PGA TOUR’s FedExCup Playoffs resume this week with the BMW Championship outside of Chicago at Conway Farms Golf Club. The top-70 eligible players in the FedExCup standings will compete in a no-cut event with the top-30 advancing to next week’s TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola. The current top-5 in the standings are: No. 1 Jason Day, No. 2 Jordan Spieth, No. 3 Rickie Fowler, No. 4 Henrik Stenson and No. 5 Bubba Watson. Due to Notre Dame’s scheduled 3:30 p.m. ET football game on Saturday afternoon, NBC will carry lead-in coverage from Noon-3:30 p.m., with third round coverage concluding on Golf Channel from 3:30-6 p.m. Across the pond, the game’s elite female players from the United States and Europe will compete against one another in the biennial Solheim Cup International match play competition. Europe won the previous contest 18-10 at Colorado Golf Club for their second consecutive Solheim Cup victory. Stacy Lewis and Lexi Thompson lead a United States team looking to avenge its most recent loss. The Web.com Tour Finals continue this week in North Carolina with the Small Business Connection Championship at River Run. The second of four events in the Finals, the field includes the top-75 players on the 2015 Web.com Tour money list and players having finished 126-200 in the regular season PGA TOUR FedExCup standings. Martin Kaymer and Miguel Angel Jimenez headline the field on the European Tour at the Italian Open.

PGA TOUR

BMW Championship
Dates: Sept. 17-20
Venue: Conway Farms Golf Club, Lake Forest, Ill. 

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday         3-7 p.m. (Live) / 8 p.m.-Midnight (Replay)
Friday              3-7 p.m. (Live) / 8 p.m.-Midnight (Replay)
Saturday          3:30-6 p.m. (Live) / 9 p.m.-3 a.m. (Replay)
Sunday            Noon-2 p.m. (Live) / 7 p.m.-1 a.m. (Replay)

Tournament Airtimes on NBC (Eastern):
Saturday         Noon-3:30 p.m. (Live)
Sunday           2-6 p.m. (Live) 

Broadcast Notes:
Final opportunity to qualify for next week’s TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola: The top-70 in the FedExCup standings are in the field this week, and at week’s end players in the top-30 in the standings will advance to next week’s TOUR Championship in Atlanta and earn a shot at winning the $10 million FedExCup prize. Players sitting in the top-5 following Sunday’s final round will put themselves in position to automatically take the FedExCup with a win at the TOUR Championship next week.
Horschel defends: Billy Horschel finished two shots ahead of Bubba Watson outside of Denver for his second career PGA TOUR win.
Headlining the field: Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Jason Day, Bubba Watson, Rickie Fowler,  Justin Rose, Henrik Stenson, Zach Johnson, Jim Furyk, Dustin Johnson and Jimmy Walker.

Golf Channel / NBC 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 / Notah Begay
Interviews: Steve Sands
Essays: Jimmy Roberts

LPGA TOUR

The Solheim Cup
Dates: Sept. 17-20
Venue: St. Leon-Rot Golf Club (St. Leon Course), St. Leon-Rot, Germany 

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday         Solheim Cup Opening Ceremony       11 a.m.-Noon
Friday              Solheim Cup Day 1                             2 a.m.-Noon
Saturday          Solheim Cup Day 2                             2 a.m.-Noon
Sunday            Solheim Cup Final Day                       4:30-11 a.m. 

Broadcast Notes:
Format: This is the first Solheim Cup being contested in Germany (previous European host countries include Scotland, Wales, Sweden and Ireland). Four foursome matches and four four-ball matches will be contested on Friday and Saturday, with 12 singles matches to be played on Sunday. Europe will need to win 14 of the 28 points available to retain the Cup, while the United States will need to earn 14 ½ points to take back the Cup.
Europe defends: Europe won the previous contest 18-10 at Colorado Golf Club for their second consecutive Solheim Cup victory. Leading by a single point following the first three sessions, Europe swept the Saturday afternoon four-ball session to take a 10 ½ – 5 ½ lead into the final day. The United States leads the all-time series 8-5, although they have lost the last two editions. Nine of the 12 members of the 2013-winning European team return, while the United States returns 11 of the 12 members from its 2013 team.
United States Team: Stacy Lewis, Lexi Thompson, Cristie Kerr, Michelle Wie, Brittany Lincicome, Morgan Pressel, Angela Stanford, Gerina Piller, Alison Lee, Lizette Salas, Brittany Lang, Paula Creamer, Juli Inkster (Captain), Pat Hurst (Assistant Captain) and Wendy Ward (Assistant Captain).
European Team: Suzann Pettersen, Gwladys Nocera, Charley Hull, Melissa Reid, Anna Nordqvist, Azahara Munoz, Sandra Gal, Carlota Ciganda, Karine Icher, Caroline Hedwall, Caroline Masson, Catriona Matthew, Carin Koch (Captain), Sophie Gustafson (Assistant Captain) and Annika Sorenstam (Assistant Captain).

Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Play by Play: Terry Gannon  / Tom Abbott
Analyst: Judy Rankin / Karen Stupples
Tower: Curt Byrum / Tom Abbott (Afternoon)
On-Course: Jerry Foltz / Kay Cockerill / Curt Byrum (Afternoon) / Karen Stupples (Afternoon)

WEB.COM TOUR

Small Business Connection Championship at River Run
Dates: Sept. 17-20
Venue: River Run Country Club, Davidson, N.C. 

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday         12:30-2:30 p.m. (Live) / Midnight-2 a.m. (Friday replay)
Friday              12:30-2:30 p.m. (Live)
Saturday          7-9 p.m. (Tape delay) / 3-5 p.m. (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Sunday            2-4 p.m. (Live)

Broadcast Notes:
Web.com Tour Finals continue: The four-event Web.com Tour Finals continue with its second leg this week, as eligible players finishing 126-200 in the PGA TOUR FedExCup standings and players finishing 26-100 on the Web.com Tour season money list compete for a chance at securing one of 25 additional 2015-16 PGA TOUR cards up for grabs at the conclusion of the Web.com Tour Championship. Players having finished in the top-25 on the Web.com Tour money list already having secured their 2015-16 PGA TOUR card also are eligible to complete in the Web.com Tour Finals to try and improve their playing status for next season.
Headlining the field: Jason Allred, Tommy Gainey, Oliver Goss, Cody Gribble, Lucas Glover, Billy Hurley, Sam Saunders, Scott Langley, Aaron Baddeley, Trey Mullinax and Robert Allenby.

Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Play by Play: Whit Watson
Analyst: Craig Perks
Tower: Steve Burkowski
On-Course: Phil Blackmar / Tripp Isenhour

EUROPEAN TOUR

Italian Open
Dates: Sept. 17-20
Venue: Golf Club Milano, Monza Park, Italy 

Tournament Airtimes on Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday         5:30-7:30 a.m. / 9:30-11 a.m. (Live)
Friday              Midnight-2 a.m. (Saturday tape delay) / 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Saturday          Noon-3:30 p.m. (Tape delay) / 7-11 a.m. (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)
Sunday            4-6 p.m. (Tape delay) / 7:30 a.m.-Noon (Streaming on Golf Live Extra)

Broadcast Notes:
Otto defends: Hennie Otto won by two strokes over David Howell for his third career European Tour win.
Headlining the field: Martin Kaymer, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Padraig Harrington, Darren Clarke, Matteo Manassero, Danny Willet, Y.E. Yang, Bernd Wiesberger and Hennie Otto.

Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Play by Play: Dougie Donnelly
Analyst: Warren Humphreys
On-Course: Julian Tutt

-NBC Sports Group-