FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, February 18th, 2020
SEVEN CONSECUTIVE WEEKS OF PGA TOUR BROADCAST COVERAGE AIRING ACROSS NBC SPORTS GROUP BEGINS THIS WEEK WITH THE WGC-MEXICO CHAMPIONSHIP
NBC Sports to Air More Than 310 Live Tournament Hours (Linear TV, Streaming)
PGA TOUR, NBC Sports to Live Stream Every Shot During THE PLAYERS
Dan Hicks Celebrates 20-Year Anniversary as NBC Sports’ Play-by-Play Host; Stretch to Feature Analysts, Expert Storytellers Making Up Deepest Bench in Golf
ORLANDO, Fla. (Feb. 18, 2020) – NBC Sports Group is set to kick off its stretch of seven consecutive weeks featuring PGA TOUR broadcast coverage, beginning with the network’s Emmy-nominated live tournament coverage from the WGC-Mexico Championship (Thursday-Sunday, Feb. 20-23) on GOLF Channel and NBC. The span will provide more than 310 hours of live tournament coverage across linear television and PGA TOUR LIVE on NBC Sports Gold.
Anchored by THE PLAYERS Championship (March 12-15) next month, the seven-week span will contribute to NBC Sports’ schedule of marquee events in 2020, including The 149TH Open (July 16-19), men’s and women’s Olympic golf competitions (July 30-Aug. 8), FedExCup Playoffs (August), and Ryder Cup (Sept. 25-27).
“This stretch of the PGA TOUR season carries great familiarity for golf fans, with a propensity for iconic moments from signature venues, led by TPC Sawgrass and THE PLAYERS,” said Molly Solomon, executive producer, GOLF Channel. “A passion for great storytelling is at the helm of NBC Sports’ Emmy-nominated live tournament coverage, which is exhibited by the deepest bench in golf, with experienced analysts and expert storytellers both in front of and behind the camera.”
Seven-week Span to Provide More Than 310 Hours of Live Tournament Coverage: Beginning with Thursday’s opening round coverage of the WGC-Mexico Championship, NBC Sports Group will dedicate more than 310 hours of live PGA TOUR tournament coverage over the next seven weeks. More than 175 hours of live linear coverage will air across GOLF Channel and NBC, with an additional 135 hours of PGA TOUR LIVE coverage on NBC Sports Gold that will precede traditional live tournament coverage.
PGA TOUR, NBC Sports to Live Stream Every Shot During THE PLAYERS: Originally announced in October, the PGA TOUR and NBC Sports Group will collaborate to live stream every single shot of THE PLAYERS Championship (Thursday-Sunday, March 12-15). Across the four days, this will equate to more than 32,000 shots being shown live by utilizing nearly 120 cameras positioned throughout TPC Sawgrass’ Stadium Course, with each group having its own dedicated stream throughout the tournament.
Dan Hicks Celebrates 20-Year Anniversary Since Making Debut in NBC Sports’ 18th Tower: Making his initial debut as NBC Sports’ play-by-play host on PGA TOUR coverage at the 2000 Doral Open (won by Jim Furyk), this year Dan Hicks will celebrate the 20-year anniversary since his first broadcast in the network’s 18th tower. Contributing to some of golf’s most memorable broadcast calls over the past two decades, Hicks will be joined in the 18th tower by NBC Sports’ lead golf analyst, Paul Azinger, for the second consecutive year.
For full details on NBC Sports’ live tournament broadcast teams and tournament airtimes, visit here.
“Golf Pick ‘Em” Returns to NBC Sports Predictor App: After gaining popularity with fans following its debut last year, “Golf Pick ‘Em presented by FootJoy” returns on the NBC Sports Predictor App this year. The free-to-play game features a weekly contest, and – new for this year – will offer fans the chance to win a $50,000 prize each week. Last week’s Genesis Invitational marked the first contest of “Golf Pick ‘Em” in 2020, with more than 125,000 fans submitting entries for the week. In addition to providing the option for fans to create a league to compete alongside friends, those participating in “Golf Pick ‘Em” also will be eligible to receive a FootJoy prize pack during weeks when a FootJoy brand ambassador wins the tournament.
-NBC Sports Group-
