Fox Sports 1 Launch: "It is not a hill they have to climb, it's the Grand Canyon."

Joe Flint in the LA Times files a Calendar section front page feature on this Saturday's launch of Fox Sports 1, the future home to USGA golf starting in 2015. He analyzes "the dominant and growing role sports is playing in the modern television industry" and takes us inside Fox Sports to learn more about what the network has planned to get itself into homes (so far not going so well) and attract viewers.

I can't wait for the afternoon roundtable show when this gang--headed by 18-34 yo favorite Regis Philbin--kicks around possible Walker Cup selections, maybe with Reege wondering if any of them go to Notre Dame.

"It is a bit out of left field, but that's what we do," said Fox Sports Co-President Eric Shanks of the hiring of Philbin to host "Crowd Goes Wild," an afternoon round table that will also feature former Baltimore Raven Trevor Pryce, Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Gay and Katie Nolan, best known for her racy sports-related YouTube videos.

You know when I think left field, I think the USGA!

As for those "racy" videos, think Sarah Silverman…only even less funny, less interesting, less intelligent, but worth bookmarking in your Dry Alternatives To Waterboarding folder.

From the story it sounds like Fox hopes to innovate in the audio department--and we know this new USGA deal is all about the innovation that the USGA didn't get from NBC and ESPN. Though I'm pretty sure that short of mics on players (at USGA events no less!), NBC's award-winning and impressive sound man Larry Cirillo has already been there, done that.

From David Hill of Fox:

Hill, who ran Fox Sports for decades and now oversees among other things "American Idol" and "The X-Factor," is known as an innovative producer. It was Hill who first came up with what now seems like an obvious idea to have the score and time left in a game superimposed on the TV screen. He put microphones inside bases to bring fans closer to the action.

"We spend more time and effort on audio than anyone else," he said proudly. "Close-up audio is far more emotive than close-up video.

And this ought to go over really well when blue blazer types sit down to watch the evening highlights:

Its flagship show "Fox Sports Live" — a nightly three-hour recap of the day's highlights and news — will be anchored by Jay Onrait and Dan O'Toole, two unknowns imported from Canada, where they hosted "SportsCentre" for the TSN sports channel there.

The pair are known for their morning zoo style, poking fun at the absurdities of sport with an ironic sensibility inspired by Conan O'Brien and Letterman. While some sportscasters these days are obsessed with statistics and overanalysis, Onrait and O'Toole want to keep it light.

When I think light and ironic sensibilities, I think USGA now and forever.