ESPN and Tennis Channel

I wonder if this could happen with ESPN and The Golf Channel for say, the Mercedes or Players Championships...

ESPN and The Tennis Channel will share U.S. cable TV and multimedia rights for the French Open and Australian Open through 2011 under an agreement announced Tuesday.

In August, The Tennis Channel bought the U.S. cable TV rights to the French Open previously held by ESPN. With the new deal, The Tennis Channel will air more than 100 hours of the clay-court Grand Slam, while ESPN2 will have 55 hours.

Beginning with the 2008 Australian Open, ESPN2 will continue as the main network from Melbourne; it's aired more than 120 hours of the tournament in recent years. The Tennis Channel will now be able to show up to 100 hours of that tournament when ESPN2 is not on the air.

Not So Pat Question and Pat-hetic Answer

Kudos to Peter Kostis for slipping in the "where will we see you next" question of Tiger in his post-final round Buick interview. Word has been quietly filtering out that he's likely not going to play at Riviera, and this was seemingly confirmed by Tiger's absurd answer about the long trip to Dubai and needing time to rest (though it did set up a nice zinger from Faldo about the trevails of traveling on a G5!).

Look Tiger, whether it's the traffic, the lousy weather, the poa greens, the lousy threadcount on the sheets at the Malibu beach house you rented, it doesn't matter. But don't claim fatigue with a week off after Dubai. You are more creative than that! 

But it also seems one of the writers (who!?) was pretty skeptical of Tiger's reasoning for likely skipping Riviera, and judging by the answer he received, the question hit a little too close to home...

 Q. If you don't play Nissan for whatever reason, if you're not ready or what-have-you, there will probably be some speculation like at East Lake where you're now at a point where you're trying to protect your streak, especially at a place like Riviera where you've never come close to winning; what would your answer be to that?

TIGER WOODS: People can say whatever they want. That's their opinion. They are entitled to it.

Pat Questions and Pat Answers

Besides Nick Faldo's debut, CBS introduced new graphics and going to one commercial, Jim Nantz plugged everything imaginable, and some cool Killers music reminiscent of an ABC telecast briefly appeared (but lots of tired Yanni for the most part).

The only highlight was the pairing of those two lovebirds, Tiger Woods and Peter Kostis. I'm not sure what exactly gave the love-hate away. The lack of eye contact? The distance between the two, or the general feel of a dentist office conversation?

Well as promised, Kostis delivered pat questions.

Your thoughts on today's round?

How did you feel in terms of your competitive spirit with three rounds under your belt this year?

How do you feel about the overall state of your swing and game?

Thoughts about tomorrow?

Credit for Kostis for not asking any pending fatherhood questions. Those are getting really old. And we have 6 months to go! 

"I don't get the GOLF CHANNEL so I didn't see any of it."

Thanks to reader Scott for noticing this fun exchange between Brandt Snedeker and the scribblers. He's talking about how excited his parents were at his play and that they were watching it on The Golf Channel GOLF CHANNEL (thanks ASAP for reminding me it goes in caps). Snedeker is staying at the Hampton Inn where, well, he couldn't watch with them.

 Q. You keep on talking about your dad; is he here?
BRANDT SNEDEKER: He's not. He's at home watching on TV probably more nervous than I will ever be. He's sweating it out at home.

Q. Did you talk to him? What did he say?
BRANDT SNEDEKER: I talked to him last night. He's giddy as a school girl on cloud nine, could not be happier, just loving every minute of it. He and my mom are watching it on TV, they were watching the replay last night and I don't get the GOLF CHANNEL so I didn't see any of it. They said, give me play-by-play, and it's like, I was out there -- (laughter).
It was a good experience. They are excited and it's great to see them that fired up.

Q. What are their names?
BRANDT SNEDEKER: Larry and Candy. Staying at Hampton Inn. I'm not going to be Will MacKenzie and give you the room number. (Laughter.)

Johnny On "Hall of Fame Guys"

Here's another nugget from Jaime Diaz's Golf Digest piece on televised golf. He's talking to Johnny Miller about his relationship with Tiger:

Miller's relationship with Woods, for example, is respectful from afar. "Tiger's not a chummy guy, and I'm not a chummy guy," says Miller. "Hall of Fame guys are not really talkative with other males, you know. But I've treated Tiger fairly, said what I had to say." Despite not having a great voice or being much of a wordsmith, Miller has an uncanny instinct for seeing what's most interesting about the game.

I guess since Tiger's never shot 63 in a major, Johnny couldn't refer to "63-in-a-major guys."

And you know, come to think of it, I've sensed the same kind of lack of chumminess at golf tournaments since my third place finish in the Golf Writer's Association of America writing contest. Golf Writer's Award winners just aren't talkative with other award winning males, you know.

Final Golf Channel Coverage Post Mortem

Now that their big three weeks are up and before we forget about Golf Channel's coverage, Golfobserver's Sal Johnson asks whether the public will perceive the telecasts "network quality," as had been promised. 

I thought a few of the gizmos and camera work was better than the network stuff, but for some reason they still felt like Golf Channel productions instead of networks.

Your thoughts? 

"Tiger prefers pat questions so he can give pat answers"

Jaime Diaz talks to various folks about television coverage in golf. The story is accompanied by a survey that sent shivers down my spine. The American public can be frightening.

Anyway, loved this quote from Peter Kostis. It should really help smooth over that relationship with Tiger!

"Tiger prefers pat questions so he can give pat answers," says Kostis.

The Numbers Are In...

Not a very good showing for the first three weeks on The Golf Channel. Overall, they averaged .52 rating/384,000 households for their live telecasts. In case you are wondering, that's the equivalent of all the good folks in Tulsa watching...and no one else in America.

Round        Event        Rating        Households
1            Mercedes        .45            331,000
2            Mercedes        .41            305,000
3            Mercedes        .48            356,000
4            Mercedes        .68            505,000

1            Sony         .51            381,000
2            Sony        .54            399,000
3            Sony        .35            261,000
4            Sony        .67            501,000

1            Hope        .34            254,000
2            Hope        .40            299,000
3            Hope        .45            332,000
4            Hope        .77            574,000
5            Hope        .70            523,000

I've attempted to find out the 2006 Hope final round number, but haven't gotten it yet. However, the 2004 Hope final round drew a 3.8. 

They've Got An Out Clause!

AP Business writer Deborah Yo filed this comprehensive piece on the new PGA Tour TV deal and dug up stuff I don't believe I've read elsewhere.

The Golf Channel is available in 75 million homes compared with 92 million homes for ESPN. Manougian said the channel currently is in at least 85 percent of basic video tiers. The Golf Channel is part of the digital package of Cox Communications and Cablevision.

Note that Yo says it's available in 75 million homes, which would differ from the implication that GC is in 75 million homes.

Asked whether the contract has an exit clause, Manougian would only say that "any contract has disaster clauses, whether it's a one-year deal or a 20-year deal. There's nothing out of ordinary about this contract."

That's a non-confirmation confirmation, right?

Some nitty gritty numbers of interest...

It helps that Comcast isn't only counting on ad revenue to offset the Tour's rights fees. It charges cable and satellite providers 21 cents per subscriber per month, a fraction of ESPN's average monthly fee of $2.60. And Golf Channel officials say they aren't planning an immediate increase to offset the costs of the PGA Tour contract -- another bet that in doing so, they will be able to get picked up on more cable systems.

In 2005, 63 percent of the Golf Channel's $267.5 million in revenue came from license fees, according to Kagan Research in Monterey, Calif. Cash flow was $116.7 million. For 2006, Kagan is projecting a 13 percent increase in revenues to $302.5 million and cash flow of $139 million.

Yet Another Newsflash From The Golf Channel

Hot off the press release wire...

GOLF CHANNEL Tames Winds at Bob Hope Chrysler Classic with Extended Coverage in Prime Time

Demonstrating the cable network’s commitment to follow golf's breaking stories, the GOLF CHANNEL extended live tournament coverage to capture Charley Hoffman’s come-from-behind victory in a playoff over John Rollins at the final round of the Bob Hope Chrysler Classic hosted by George Lopez.

 With its pre-scheduled broadcast window scheduled to conclude at 7 p.m. ET, GOLF CHANNEL extended its live broadcast to provide viewers with shot-by-shot coverage and analysis of the first playoff of the 2007 PGA TOUR season.

Wow, the sacrifices they make! For all 8 of you who tuned in for the Sprint Post Game...

 On Golf Central (1 a.m. ET), Vince Cellini will sit down with Hoffman to break down his first PGA TOUR victory.  Golf Central also will highlight the top celebrity moments of the week.

Oh, let me go TiVo that. I wonder if I'll get a chance to see Oscar De La Hoya shadow boxing in front of a camera? The other 42 times weren't enough.

Missed any of the final round action due to the NFL Playoffs? 

No one was watching those lousy games! Come on. I mean, Sprint Post Game or Brady v. Manning down to the wire? Please.  

GOLF CHANNEL has viewers covered, with an encore presentation of the final round of play airing in its entirety beginning at 10 p.m. ET, and on Monday in prime time as a part of the network’s Monday Night Lights franchise at 8 p.m. ET.

You know I like this Monday Night Lights thing. If they keep playing these 5 hour + final rounds, they'll be finishing Monday nights under lights.

The Shortest Distance Between...

Thanks to reader Jerry for this Kelly Tilghman tribute to Yogi Berra during Friday's Bob Hope Classic telecast:

"The shortest distance between a line is two straight points."

Hey, Yogi is playing this week! 

The Standing O...

Now, I love Tadd Fujikawa and it was great to see the fans so energized by his Sony Open performance.

However, did you catch the moment when he arrives at 18 and The Golf Channel's GOLF CHANNEL's Kelly Tilghman and Nick Faldo join the standing ovation and GC (just a bit too quickly) cuts to the shot of them standing and clapping for Fujikawa?

Did anyone else get a Broadcast News flashback?  

It's hard to imagine Faldo doing that without some instruction.

And needless to say, no major network would allow its announcers to be such homers.

So, was the GC "standing o" staged?  

"Marketing solutions to elevate their brand presence on our air beyond commercial units."

Shocking I know, but The Golf Channel GOLF CHANNEL has entered into a partnership that could call into question whether they might give favorable coverage to players with a certain affiliation. I know, I know...you're stunned.

Anyway, get out your MBAspeak bingo boards...

GOLF CHANNEL PGA TOUR Platform Secures Major Partnerships with TaylorMade-adidas Golf and UBS

ORLANDO, Fla., (Jan. 13, 2007) -The GOLF CHANNEL recently has secured multi-year partnerships with TaylorMade-adidas Golf and UBS, which provides the opportunity for both companies to maximize early the GOLF CHANNEL'S 15-year programming platform with the PGA TOUR, as well as the growth of the network.  

Maximize early the 15-year programming platform? Anyone care to translate?

TaylorMade-adidas Golf will hold a significant position within PGA TOUR-related programming on the GOLF CHANNEL throughout the golf season, while also becoming the network's official golf apparel and footwear company.  The company's golf apparel will be worn on all GOLF CHANNEL live tournament telecasts and in-studio programming.

TaylorMade-adidas Golf also will become the exclusive equipment and apparel sponsor of Live From the U.S. Open, a part of the network's signature wrap-around news and analysis franchise.  And the company will hold a major media position throughout the golf season in PGA TOUR tournament programming - as well as in franchise programming such as Golf Central and Sprint Post Game - to provide complete access to their core customer base.

Franchise programming, as opposed to just programming. Does this mean we'll have the set littered with R7's?

"We're extremely gratified that we've been able to work with TaylorMade-adidas Golf to establish and entirely new partnership" said Gene Pizzolato, GOLF CHANNEL executive vice president of advertising sales and new media.  "The demand for PGA TOUR product on our air has been strong, and we are thrilled that we were able to provide our partner at TaylorMade-adidas marketing solutions to elevate their brand presence on our air beyond commercial units."

Wow, reading Pizzolato is like watching Picasso paint or Michelangelo sculpt. A true master of his medium.

Though I have to say, maybe I watched Scarface too much as a child, but something about the use of product just makes me think of that white powdery stuff Tony Montana was peddling.        

Mercedes Ratings Put Medicus, LaLanne Infomercials To Shame

Unfortunately, according to a reader who gets Street and Smith's Sports Business Daily report, Golf Channel's four-round live coverage of the Mercedes Benz Championship averaged 370,728 households, down 44% from the event's four round average on ESPN last year.

The final round averaged a 505,129 households, down 49% from ESPN's 997,310 households in 2006.

Ty Votaw, The PGA Tour's Executive Vice President of Whatever Bob Combs Used To Be In Charge Of, issued this statement...

"Conclusions after only one event--and the first event--in this relationship are not terribly productive. We're pleased with what we achieved in that first event because they were consistent with our projections. 

So even if the numbers were lousy, our VP of Number Crunching got it right, so it's all good! 

We're on track with respect to where the Golf Channel is in distribution.

And that means? 

Production quality, energy levels of the commentators and the way they could personalize the players to a much greater degree were huge positives...

 Yeah those energy levels will pay the bills...

...if you compare what we've been able to achieve in this first week with the numbers in comparison to previous Golf Channel programming numbers, we're doing precisely what the Golf Channel has paid us to do: cause people to find the PGA Tour on the Golf Channel."

They are paying us to up their numbers.

Of course, the Tour's sponsors are also paying handsomely for certain numbers.

Golf Channel Week One

Well, sad to say, it still felt like The Golf Channel of old, only the GOLF CHANNEL of new did have some great hole graphics and solid production values.

The new camera gizmos and proper putting line thing are great, but the relentless naming of the sponsors will get old.

Oh, and what's with the tacky G logo and live notice in the upper right corner? 

Your thoughts?