Brandel Chamblee Joins Forces With Golf Architect Agustin Pizá

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As he’s peddled widely on distance and criticized architects for not adapting to the modern game, Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee has not shown much sympathy for the plight of architects in the face of modern core strength. (This, even though architects could profit off of changing distances and yet most would like to see regulation in the name of sustainability.)

So it’s with great joy to see that he is teaming with Pizá Golf founder Agustin Pizá to take up a new side-hobby: golf architecture.

For Immediate Release:

"Humbled by #BrandelChamblee mention of my golf design philosophy as it relates to the structure of a good 18 chapter book. Being able to partner with such a gentleman, intellectual, analyst and arts connoisseur will ask for the best of me. I'm up for the challenge but most of all, for the fun we will have in the process of achieving exciting new golf courses which will take you, like a good book, through a carousel of emotions," Agustin Pizá

Pizá Golf has been recognized with many international accolades and has garnered a reputation for “Re-defining Golf Facilities” with their concepts – Wellness Golf and Lounge Golf. Agustin Pizá was recognized by Forbes Magazine as one of the top 100 creative minds from Mexico and Golf Inc. Magazine included him in their Power 2020 issue as an up and coming superstar. Pizá and the company have worked and have been involved in more than 60 projects on three continents

Ironically, or not, Pizá got a mention during last week’s Players Championship by Chamblee. I’m sure the whole full disclosure thing happened before or after the clip below.

2.8: 2021 Players Ratings Hold Steady

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Steady is a huge victory as cordcutting chips into sports ratings, so 2021’s final round 2.8, while almost identical to the 2019 Players final round’s 2.75, means it was a successful for NBC.

ShowBuzzDaily.com with all the 2021, 2020 and 2019 numbers here. The 2020 numbers were of the short-notice 2019 Players after the tournament was cancelled due to COVID-19.

Every Shot Live Reminder To Players: "Be mindful of what you say and do on course"

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Apparently creeped out the Big Brother vibe of the text, multiple PGA Tour players shared the above text from the Global Home. At least one player even posted an apology in advance on social media:

This is all prompted by Every Shot Live that debuted last year for one round:

Live streaming of every shot hit at THE PLAYERS Championship will get underway Thursday morning from TPC Sawgrass. Nearly 100 cameras will capture roughly 31,000 strokes taken over approximately 430 rounds played.

The feature will be available free Thursday via PGA TOUR Live on NBC Sports Gold.

Ratings: API Way Up For 2021 Bay Hill Final Round

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Bryson DeChambeau’s one-stroke win over Lee Westwood proved to be a ratings bonanza by modern day standards.

ShowbuzzDaily.com with all of the numbers.

While a 2.36 might not look huge, NBC’s 2021 Arnold Palmer Players Championship Extended Preview Show Presented By Mastercard was up 49% over last year’s 1.67 for Tyrrell Hatton’s win.

The API—excuse me, APPCEPSPBM—rating is especially impressive in this age of declining numbers, cordcutting, regular sports competition and a telecast sporting a heavy commercial and promo load.

Early round coverage on Golf Channel was also up for all of the early shows and Sunday’s pregame show also cracked the top 150 cable shows. I believe that makes it the first or second non-live tournament coverage broadcast to draw a discernable audience.

The loser in all of this?

The LPGA’s Drive On Championship, going up against the action at Bay Hill, failed to rate Sunday with live final round (at the same time!?) coverage. A shame too, as the Golden Ocala course added some zest to a strong leaderboard. But when you insist on Sunday finishes against a PGA Tour schedule staple, these things happen.

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**NBC sent this release on ratings to date.

PGA TOUR VIEWERSHIP ON NBC UP 30% IN 2021 

Combined GOLF Channel/NBC PGA TOUR Viewership Up 24% vs. 2020

Arnold Palmer Invitational Viewership Up 49% vs. 2020; Sunday’s Final Round Viewership on NBC Peaks at More Than 5.6 Million Viewers

8 of 10 PGA TOUR Events on GOLF Channel/NBC in 2021 Have Delivered Audience Increases

26 Tournament Telecasts on GOLF Channel/NBC Up At Least 10%

STAMFORD, Conn. – March 10, 2021 – NBC Sports has produced significant viewership gains for the PGA TOUR to open the 2021 calendar year, delivering a 30% year-over-year viewership increase on NBC and a 24% increase for GOLF Channel/NBC tournament coverage through last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational, according to data provided by The Nielsen Company. 

Twenty-six tournament telecasts on GOLF Channel/NBC have seen at least 10% viewership growth in 2021 compared to the first two months of 2020, and eight of the 10 PGA TOUR events on GOLF Channel/NBC in 2021 have posted year-over-year viewership growth vs. comparable coverage of the same event, most notably:

  • Arnold Palmer Invitational on GOLF Channel/NBC up 49%

  • Waste Management Phoenix Open on GOLF Channel up 38%

  • AT&T Pebble Beach on GOLF Channel up 29%

Following are viewership highlights from last week’s Arnold Palmer Invitational on GOLF Channel/NBC:

  • Sunday’s final round viewership on NBC averaged 3.9 million viewers, up 49% vs. 2020.

  • Final round viewership on NBC peaked at more than 5.6 million viewers (6-6:15 p.m. ET) as Bryson DeChambeau defeated Lee Westwood by one shot.

  • Saturday’s third round on NBC was the most-watched sports event of the day, averaging 2.5 million viewers, up 41% vs. 2020.

  • Most-watched second round (GOLF Channel), third and final rounds (NBC) for the API since 2018.

The season began at the 2021 Sentry Tournament of Champions on GOLF Channel/NBC (Jan. 7-10), which delivered:

  • Most-watched first and third rounds on GOLF Channel since 2018

  • Most-watched final round on GOLF Channel/NBC since 2017

  • Most-watched second round on GOLF Channel since 2016

Additionally, the final round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open (Feb. 7) averaged 3.7 million viewers, up 29% vs. 2020 final round coverage on CBS. Lead-in coverage on GOLF Channel averaged 1.3 million viewers, up 83% vs. 2020.

"At Golf Channel, women say, sexism fuels a ‘boys club’ culture"

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The Washington Post’s Ben Strauss interviewed 16 former and two current Golf Channel employees after former reporter and Golf Central anchor Lisa Cornwell aired her concerns on the No Laying Up podcast. Strauss reports that the women described “sexism, misogyny and harassment they have endured at the network”.

Strauss writes:

Golf Channel has disputed Cornwell’s claims in a response to the EEOC. An NBC spokesman, Greg Hughes, said in an email that the network is “vigorously defending this matter.”

Presented with a list of allegations made by other women, Hughes disputed many of their claims and said “the vast majority” had been investigated and that “appropriate action was taken.” Others, he said, the network was only now hearing of and would investigate “promptly and thoroughly.” The network declined to make any employees available for interviews.

Many of the women spoke anonymously, citing fear of breaking the nondisclosure agreements they signed in exchange for severance when leaving the network and their future job prospects. Hughes said that former employees interested in speaking publicly could contact Golf Channel to be released from confidentiality agreements, but several women said they did not feel comfortable doing that.

“Golf Channel is committed to providing a workplace where all employees are treated equitably and respectfully, and regularly conducts training to support that goal,” Hughes said.

Of note: many of the situations detailed in the piece related to incidents over a decade ago and most of those who had complaints made against them were disciplined or are no longer at the network as a result of their behavior or cost cuts.

The reporting effort by Strauss is impressive. However, many of Cornwell’s accusations leveled in the NLU pod were not addressed even though some relate to the current culture under Comcast/NBC. Perhaps a product of the “EEOC” claim and need for confidentiality until that investigation is complete.

Nice And Steady Ratings: WGC At The Concession Slightly Up

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Showbuzzdaily has last week’s ratings for the 2021 WGC Workday at The Concession (listed as WGC Mexico).

The 1.79 final round rating on NBC was up just a tick from last year’s 1.83 based on audience size specifics. Saturday was up nicely, too. The overall steady numbers do not include streaming data. In sports ratings right now it seems “steady” or even “slightly down” is a positive for the sport.

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"Tiger Woods’ catastrophic crash in Los Angeles has cast a spotlight on a low-budget documentary series that featured golf’s biggest star"

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A devastating situation gets no better after reading Meg James and Wendy Lee’s L.A. Times piece detailing what Tiger Woods was headed to when crashing his car in Rolling Hills Estates. Day two of the shoot was to be with quarterbacks Drew Brees and Justin Herbert for a Discovery+/GolfTV/Golf Digest series that originally had grander ambitions. The finger pointing has already begun as to why the star was driving himself to the “set”.

TV giant Discovery typically provides transportation for stars of its productions, arranging professional drivers to deliver the talent to and from sets and location shoots, according to an executive close to the company who was not authorized to comment.

That was the arrangement for this week’s shoot in Rolling Hills Estates, people close to the production said.

It’s unclear why Woods did not opt to have a chauffeur take him to the film site, but Woods is known, in golf circles, to prefer to drive himself to events, often with caddie Joe LaCava in the passenger seat.

(It’s actually TGR’s Rob McNamara the last few years and who visited Woods yesterday at the hospital, contrary to a TMZ report it was LaCava).

Discovery pushed back:

“That’s not a question for Discovery — that’s a question for Tiger’s team,” said Fiona McLachlan, a London-based senior vice president for sports communications for Discovery. McLachlan declined further comment.

Tiger Woods’ agent, Mark Steinberg, did not respond to requests for comment.

There was also this:

Initially, the Woods project was envisioned as much larger scale, with stunts and a bigger budget, but over time the size and scope were modified. Discovery instead decided on a documentary, “fly-on-the-wall” type production with non-union crews to give it a more intimate feel, people familiar with the matter said.

Had it been a union project, a Teamsters driver could have chauffeured Tiger Woods and any other talent or crew to the film location, said Lindsay Dougherty, an organizer at the Teamsters Local 399, which represents drivers, casting directors and location managers.

This also becomes relevant should it turn out Woods was simply speeding because he was late for the “call time”.

The story also puts a dollar figure on Woods’ Discovery deal.

The series sprung from a four-year deal worth an estimated $35 million that Discovery struck with Woods in November 2018.

At the time, Discovery billed the arrangement as “a strategic partnership” between Discovery, the PGA Tour, GolfTV and Woods. The cable programming giant, which owns several international sports channels, said that it would “collaborate with Woods on a wide range of programming, content creation and storytelling opportunities that will offer fans an authentic and regular look into the life, mind and performance of the game’s ultimate icon.”

Director Peter Berg’s post after hearing of the accident news:

Ratings: 2021 Genesis (2.24) Gains Without Daytona 500 Competition

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This year’s Max Homa-won Genesis Invitational scored nice ratings upticks on CBS (2.24 vs 2.03 final round) despite last year’s leaderboard featuring Adam Scott and Rory McIlroy, reports ShowBuzzDaily.com.

Saturday’s wind-delay killed numbers for the network window but saw a nice audience turn to Golf Channel for handoff coverage.

2020’s Genesis went up against the Daytona 500 (6.26).

Golf Channel saw a nice uptick in Sunday morning coverage and other windows.

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Ratings: CBS's 2021 Pebble Beach Telecast's Up, Most Watched Regular Season Event In Two Years

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The Jordan Spieth bounce? Daytona in a rain delay? Either way a nice jump in ratings for CBS’s broadcast of the 2021 AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. Golf Channel lead-in ratings were also up across the board.

According to ShowBuzzDaily, the Saturday broadcast was almost identical to last year’s number, but was minus the pro-am’s traditional celebrity-heavy broadcast. Sunday’s final round saw a nice leap in the only demo that matters from an average of 488,000 to 792,000 viewers.

Streaming numbers are not made available.

CBS is touting the numbers as the most watched “regular season” PGA Tour broadcast in two years.

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Agent: Mickelson "Absolutely" Open To TV Work In Next 12-24 Months

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After suggesting he might reevaluate things if a lousy 2021 start happened—it has—Phil Mickelson’s agent says his client is open to TV offers.

In a rather story on Front Office Sports, Michael McCarthy quotes agent Steve Loy.

“Absolutely, we’re always in discussions about Phil’s future,” said Steve Loy, Mickelson’s longtime business partner at SPORTFIVE.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if in the next 12 to 24 months you might see more of Phil on the air.” 

Well that’s subtle.

There is the hitch that CBS is about to give Jim Nantz is significant raise, NBC would like its announcers to pay them if they could get away with it, and ESPN does early round coverage of just two majors.

During CBS’s 2020 coverage of the PGA Championship Mickelson earned strong reviews for his over-caffeinated but compelling stint in the booth with Nantz and Nick Faldo. But as McCarthy notes in a possible giveaway that agent Loy was in hard sell mode, also noted this:

Even better, Mickelson connects with a younger audience, boasting nearly 2 million followers across Instagram and Twitter.

He reaches the demo! That’s worth $15 million a year, no?

Kevin Hall Takes A Shot At (Nantz Backyard) History And Aces

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A tradition unlike any other, west coast style, is Jim Nantz’s backyard 7th hole and hole-in-one rock of fame.

Kevin Hall, playing on a sponsor’s invite to the AT&T National Pro-Am, joins elite company with Nantz on the call (and steady camerawork!).

Daniel Berger Eagles Final Hole Of Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Blessedly Minus The Pro-Am

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How nice was it not to hear the words, “and there’s Larry The Cable Guy”?

Or, Ray Romano has come into view of our cameras.

Don’t get me wrong, I support the Pebble Beach pro-am concept and know that it brings in new fans to golf when certain entertainers or athletes are involved. But gosh it was fun to see Pebble Beach played an hour faster and unencumbered by former A-listers and briefcases.

Add in CBS presenting a zippier show than in the past filled with those stunning drone and blimp shots…

This was fun too:

A special shout-out must go to the PGA Tour staff using a fun mix of tees to liven-up the setup. From a 139-yarder at the 5th to Sunday’s shorter 10th tee, the switch-up from normal pro-am years was welcomed. And no change was more exciting than seeing players going for the 18th in two. The day culminated with this stunning final hole eagle by 2021 winner Daniel Berger (Steve DiMeglio’s Golfweek game story here):

The tenth tee setup Sunday got some nice graphics and social media support. Always great when course setup is highlighted…

And the PGA Tour photography team produced some beauties, including this:

"NBCUniversal’s Streaming Strategy Raises Prospect of WarnerMedia Merger"

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Shocker of all shockers, people want more than just reruns of The Office.

The launch of NBC’s Peacock is already causing concern and calls for a merger report The Information’s Jessica Toonkel and Tom Dotan.

The streaming app is the cornerstone of NBC’s future as it winds down cable channels and gradually shifts viewers to paying. However, it’s already becoming apparent that not enough people will be paying to keep it going.

NBCU has said that 33 million people have signed up to use Peacock, which launched last July, a couple of months after HBO Max. But data from an internal NBCU presentation viewed by The Information showed that Peacock recently had only 11.3 million “monthly active ad-supported accounts.” (Active accounts are households and can include multiple viewers). A Peacock spokesperson said the 11.3 million figure was low.

The data also suggests that Peacock’s priciest $9.99 tier that doesn’t carry ads only drew 4% of people signing up to use Peacock.

The story suggests Peacock’s all-in-one approach is showing signs of not working.

That reflects NBCU’s original strategy with Peacock, which was to treat it almost like a traditional TV network. In a strategy developed by Shell’s predecessor atop NBCU, Steve Burke, Peacock’s programming has a mix of news and sports as well as entertainment. Netflix, HBO Max and Disney+, in contrast, don’t carry news and sports. Even now, marketing for Peacock has emphasized the free tier rather than the expensive subscription offering.

Shell has long felt that NBCU should try and build the pricier subscription tier of Peacock’s business, say people familiar with his thinking. But to draw paying users, Peacock needs more original programs, where NBCU’s resources are limited, thanks to the impact of the pandemic and cord-cutting on its cable business.

The shift of shows and other “content” that would have once been under the Golf Channel banner began in earnest last week when Rory McIlroy’s Golfpass stuff and PointsBet second-screen gambling feeds were behind the Peacock Premium wall. I’m not clear if the Golfpass is totally separate or there are crossover elements and since Comcast will inevitably shift its course again soon, no need to dig deep.

News And Notes: Major Media Move Speculation, Landmark (Watch) Deals

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This week’s major notes cover the gamut with a little Ryder Cup news thrown in.

The media items alone are fun to consider—unless your job depends on it—and suggest we’re in for a lively period of change in how and where we consume the big events.

The weekly notes are free for all subscribers so sign up. And here is more on how The Quadrilateral works, now one month and 17 editions in. Thanks to all who’ve signed up.

2021 Waste Management Up In All Ratings For NBC And Golf Channel

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Showbuzzdaily.com with the ratings up all days and especially Sunday on NBC, filling in while CBS hosted the Super Bow. With a compelling leaderboard and pre-Super Bowl finish ultimately captured by Brooks Koepka the 2021 Waste Management delivered.

Streaming numbers are not made available but assuming you can get the balky NBC Sports app to work—they no longer support my cable subscription, so charming!—there might have been nice numbers there as well.

Last year’s Waste Management numbers on CBS and Golf Channel along with other sports that 2020 weekend. Webb Simpson prevailed last year over Tony Finau and Justin Thomas.

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