R&A: Televising Walker Cup "Complex And Increasingly Costly"

As most have figured out by now, the 2019 Walker Cup can only be seen on social media or via late night highlight shows after getting extensive Fox Sports coverage in 2017.

Ryan Herrington reached out to the R&A to find out how their deal with Sky and Golf Channel eluded the Walker Cup and also provides background on prior event coverage. He got this statement regarding the creation of a world feed ala other R&A championships:

“Delivering high quality, live coverage from an event such as the Walker Cup is a complex and increasingly costly exercise. We decided for this year’s match to concentrate our resources on producing compelling highlights packages for our broadcast partners and high-quality content, including highlights, player interviews and behind the scenes footage, from our social and digital media channels. We have a responsibility to spread our investment across nearly 20 amateur events throughout the year and we believe we have achieved the right balance for this match.”

While I’m sure this would be a financial loser and a strong case could be made that the money could be better spent in other parts of the game, the Walker Cup only comes to the UK every four years and is more than just one of many championships. And in today’s world, much of an event’s stature is derived from being seen on television.