NBC To Take Over Open Championship Coverage In 2016
/Multiple sources confirm that ESPN will be stepping away from its R&A broadcast arrangement a year early, with NBC/Golf Channel stepping in to handle the 2016 Open Championship and other R&A events.
This comes as little surprise considering the BBC's recent decision to walk away a year early and news of ESPN shedding contracts and select rights deals as part of Disney-mandated cost cutting. The Worldwide Leader recently cancelled its annual fall survey trip to Great Britain as part of its Open Championship, Senior Open Championship and Women's British Open planning, signaling to its golf teams the end of a multi-decade arrangement.
NBC/Golf Channel won a bidding war for The Open beginning in 2017, but will now head into the 2016 Open at Royal Troon with its first major championship since losing the USGA package in 2013 to Fox Sports.
NBC/Golf Channel is also carrying next summer's return of golf to the Olympic Games.
This leaves ESPN with the Masters Thursday/Friday coverage and other Augusta National-controlled amateur events as its only remaining golf telecasts.
An ESPN on ABC team will handle November's CME final round.
**ESPN's John Wildhack took the high ground and Golf Channel's Mike McCarley confirms that the deal came together after BBC handed off to Sky.
From Sports Business Journal's John Ourand.
Officials would not discuss specifics about how much NBC is paying ESPN for the rights to the 2016 event. ESPN’s deal that took effect in 2010 averaged $25 million per year. McCarley said NBC gave ESPN “industry considerations” but would not specify what they entailed.
Next year’s tournament is scheduled for July 14-17 at Royal Troon in Scotland.
It was important for NBC to pick up next year’s tournament to add to an already deep golf schedule for both Golf Channel and NBC. For 12 consecutive weeks next summer, the two will carry the British Open, British Senior Open and British Women’s Open; the return of golf to the Olympics for the first time in 112 years; the PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Playoffs; and the Ryder Cup from Minnesota.
“Obviously, we were itching to get started [with the British Open],” McCarley said. “We want to put a significant promotional effort behind the Open. Waiting a year was not going to help us and was not going to help the event. We wanted to help start growing the event immediately if we could.”
**The official release announcing what is now a 13-year run for NBC/Golf Channel.
