NBC Sports Group Dedicating More Than 20 Hours of Live Tournament Coverage to
TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola as FedExCup Playoffs Culminate in Atlanta
Wie Returns as LPGA Tour Sets Stage for Final Major of 2014 Season
with The Evian Championship Airing on Golf Channel, NBC
Web.com Tour Finals Continue with Third Leg of Series at
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship in Ohio
Luiten Defends KLM Open in Netherlands
ORLANDO, Fla. (September 9, 2014) – The 45-event 2013-2014 PGA TOUR season will culminate on Sunday, as the 29-man TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola field competes for the FedExCup Playoffs $10 million first-place prize, and the title of 2014 FedExCup champion. NBC Sports Group will air 22 hours of live tournament coverage from East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta. Golf Central, Golf Channel’s signature news program also will originate on-site from East Lake to set up and recap the day’s tournament coverage. Michelle Wie returns to tournament competition for the first time in a month for The Evian Championship in France, after being sidelined with a right index finger injury. Golf Channel will carry live coverage of the first three rounds of the final LPGA Tour major in 2014, and the final round will air on both Golf Channel and NBC (tape delay), as well as streaming live through Golf Live Extra beginning at 6:30 a.m. ET on Sunday. The Web.com Tour Finals stages its third of four events this week with the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship in Ohio, and will conclude next week with the Web.com Tour Championship. The European Tour is in Netherlands for the KLM Open.
PGA TOUR
TOUR Championship by Coca-Cola
Dates: Sept. 11-14
Venue: East Lake Golf Club, Atlanta, Ga.
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 1-6 p.m. (Live) / 8:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. (Replay)
Friday 1-6 p.m. (Live) / 8:30 p.m.-1:30 a.m. (Replay)
Saturday Noon-2:30 p.m. (Live) / 6:30 p.m.-12:30 a.m. (Replay)
Sunday Noon-1:30 p.m. (Live) / 7 p.m.-1 a.m. (Replay)
Tournament Airtimes On NBC (Eastern):
Saturday 2:30-6 p.m. (Live)
Sunday 1:30-6 p.m. (Live)
Broadcast Notes:
FedExCup contenders: Every player in the field this week has a mathematical chance at winning the FedExCup. However, the current top-5 in the FedExCup standings (Chris Kirk, Billy Horschel, Bubba Watson, Rory McIlroy and Hunter Mahan) are the only ones guaranteed to win the FedExCup with a TOUR Championship victory on Sunday. Mahan also is the only player in the field to have competed in all eight TOUR Championships since the FedExCup was established in 2007. Players in the field this week earn automatic invitations to the 2015 Masters, U.S. Open and Open Championship. The last place finisher (29th) is guaranteed a little more than $300,000 and the ultimate winner could earn as much as $11.44 million (by winning both the TOUR Championship and the FedExCup).
Headlining the field: Chris Kirk, Billy Horschel, Bubba Watson, Rory McIlroy, Hunter Mahan, Jimmy Walker, Jim Furyk, Matt Kuchar, Rickie Fowler, Jason Day, Jordan Spieth, Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, Martin Kaymer, Zach Johnson, Bill Haas, John Senden, Patrick Reed, Cameron Tringale, Russell Henley, Morgan Hoffmann, Webb Simpson, Ryan Palmer, Kevin Na, Geoff Ogilvy, Justin Rose, Brendon Todd, Hideki Matsuyama and Gary Woodland.
NBC / Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Play by Play: Rich Lerner (Golf Channel) / Dan Hicks (NBC)
Analyst: Frank Nobilo (Golf Channel) / Johnny Miller (NBC)
Tower: Gary Koch / Peter Jacobsen
On Course: Roger Maltbie / Mark Rolfing / Notah Begay / Phil Parkin (Golf Channel)
Interviews: Steve Sands
Essays: Jimmy Roberts
Golf Central on-site Broadcast Team:
Host: Ryan Burr
Analyst: Brandel Chamblee / Steve Flesch
Reporter: Todd Lewis
LPGA TOUR
The Evian Championship
Dates: Sept. 11-14
Venue: Route du Golf (The Evian Resort Golf Club), Evian-les Bains, France
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 7:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Live) / 2-5 a.m. (Friday replay)
Friday 7:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (Live) / 2-5 a.m. (Saturday replay)
Saturday 6:30-11:30 a.m. (Live) / 1-3 a.m. (Sunday replay)
Sunday 8 a.m.-Noon (Tape Delay) / Live streaming on Golf Live Extra (6:30 a.m.-Noon)
Tournament Airtimes On NBC (Eastern):
Sunday Noon-1:30 p.m. (Tape Delay) / Live streaming on Golf Live Extra (6:30 a.m.-Noon)
Broadcast Notes:
Wie returns: 2014 U.S. Women’s Open champion Michelle Wie is making her first start in a month as she returns from a right index finger injury.
NBC to air conclusion of The Evian Championship final round on Sunday: Immediately following Golf Channel’s coverage (8 a.m.-Noon ET) of Sunday’s final round of The Evian Championship, NBC will air the conclusion of the event, beginning at Noon ET. The entire final round also will be live streamed on Golf Live Extra beginning at 6:30 a.m. ET.
Pettersen defends: In a rain shortened 54-hole event in 2013, Suzann Pettersen finished two shots ahead of Lydia Ko for her 13th LPGA Tour victory at the time, and her second career major.
Headlining the field: Stacy Lewis, Inbee Park, Lydia Ko, Suzann Pettersen, So Yeon Ryu, Michelle Wie, Lexi Thompson, Shanshan Feng, Karrie Webb, Anna Nordqvist and Cristie Kerr.
NBC / Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Studio Host: Steve Burkowski
Play by Play: Terry Gannon
Analyst: Judy Rankin
On Course: Jerry Foltz
WEB.COM TOUR
Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship
Dates: Sept. 11-14
Venue: The Ohio State University Golf Club (Scarlet Course), Columbus, Ohio
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 6:30-8:30 p.m. (Tape Delay) / Live streaming on Golf Live Extra (3:30-5:30 p.m.)
Friday 6:30-8:30 p.m. (Tape Delay) / Live streaming on Golf Live Extra (3:30-5:30 p.m.)
Saturday 2:30-4:30 p.m. (Live)
Sunday 1:30-4:30 p.m. (Live)
Broadcast Notes: The Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship is the third of four Web.com Tour Finals events. The field is made up of players ranked 26-100 on the Web.com Tour season-long money list, along with players ranked 126-200 in the PGA TOUR FedExCup standings who are competing for 25 PGA TOUR cards for the 2014-15 season. Members of “The 25” – those Web.com Tour players already having secured their PGA TOUR cards for 2014-15 also are eligible to compete in the Web.com Tour Finals to try and better position themselves on the PGA TOUR priority list for qualifying to get into tournament fields.
Headlining the field: John Peterson, J.J. Henry, Trevor Immelman, Ben Curtis, Chad Campbell, Tim Herron, Heath Slocum, Y.E. Yang, Sam Saunders, Michael Kim and Casey Wittenberg.
Golf Channel Broadcast Team
Play by Play: Whit Watson
Analyst: Craig Perks
Tower: Phil Blackmar
On Course: Kay Cockerill / Rich Beem
EUROPEAN TOUR
KLM Open
Dates: Sept. 11-14
Venue: Kennemer Golf & Country Club, Zandvoort, Netherlands
Tournament Airtimes On Golf Channel (Eastern):
Thursday 5:30-7:30 a.m. (Live)
Friday 5:30-7:30 a.m. (Live)
Saturday 4:30-6 p.m. (Tape Delay) / Live streaming on Golf Live Extra (7-11 a.m.)
Sunday 4:30-6 p.m. (Tape Delay) / Live streaming on Golf Live Extra (5:30-10 a.m.)
Broadcast Notes:
Luiten defends: Joost Luiten defeated Miguel Angel Jimenez on the first playoff hole for his third career European Tour win, and his second of the 2013 season. In doing so, Luiten also became the first Dutch player in European Tour history to win twice in the same season.
Headlining the field: Thomas Bjorn, Jonas Blixt, Paul Casey, Miguel Angel Jimenez, Brooks Koepka, Padraig Harrington, Matteo Manassero, Jose Maria Olazabel and Joost Luiten.
Golf Channel Broadcast Team:
Studio Host: Steve Burkowski
Play by Play: Dougie Donnelly
Analyst: Tony Johnstone
On Course: Julian Tutt
-NBC Sports Group-
