Golf’s winter telecast raises some awkward questions

When new PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolup took the stage for the first time, he hinted that sweeping changes were coming.

“I think the focus will be on hosting events that are really important,” Rolup said. “The games should be easy to understand. The regular season and playoffs should be connected in a way that all sports fans can understand in preparation for the Tour Championship.”

For the first time, Rolup presented his unifying theory for the PGA Tour — which involved a new word in professional golf: lack.

There’s still a lot we don’t know about what Rolapp’s vision of scarcity will look like. Will it involve the continuation of the PGA Tour’s fall season, which goes directly beyond Rolup’s description, but continues to add events with multi-year contracts with title sponsors? How about a condensed regular season? Will future tours welcome fewer players, or will there be no cuts?

Three months after Rolap’s first words, however, we do know the rarity of pro golf: It’s going to give us more TV.

On Monday morning, Golf Channel announced the rosters for the first-ever Duel. golf channel games — A prime-time, first-of-its-kind television golf skills competition featuring teams led by Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy. this game Will be held three weeks after return skin gamePrimetime television match between Justin Thomas, Xander Schauffele, Keegan Bradley and Tommy Fleetwood. These two events will lay the foundation for the return of golf final The second season of a primetime, made-for-TV product called TGL will begin on December 28. Not to mention the on-again, off-again television production golf series TGL. Contestor the new golf tour dedicated to reinventing golf on television, LIV.

Everywhere you look, there are people selling golf on TV, and the ads look less and less like a 72-hole golf tournament.

Rolap, a former head of media rights for the NFL, understands the key concept underpinning these new golf ventures: making money from sports events through television. If you are a member of Golf Channel, TGL or skin gamewas aired on major networks to achieve major ratings. But own responsibility make The TV dollars for these events are a little less ironclad: people, especially casual golf fans already tortured by the grind of golf’s regular season, will tune in.

In some ways, it’s easy to see why this new season of golf’s folly might appeal to someone as sensitive as Rolap. In the NFL, Rolap learned the value of a season that lasts 20 weeks but never really ends. He sees how non-traditional football content (Senior Bowl, combine, draft, free agency, training camp, preseason) keeps the NFL at the center of the sports world’s collective consciousness, even if the game is still months away. He learned that television was a vessel for experimentation whose ultimate goal was to attract attention.

But golf’s new vision requires something the NFL doesn’t often worry about: attention from the broader sports world.

This is a worrying issue competitive The slow slide from “golf events” to “celebrity events featuring golf”: Even if the best players appear on television, and even if they compete in a highly marketable format, there is no guarantee that fans will care enough to watch. Even if fans do tune in, there’s no guarantee you’ve built something they’ll love continue Watch every year (like any event on the non-traditional football calendar).

That’s not to say the people behind these events shouldn’t bother. TGL’s success in its inaugural season far exceeded most expectations, and it returns for year two with reasons for optimism. Let’s just say that games that make money on TV depend on audience viewing, and when it comes to TV-produced golf games, audiences are far from guaranteed. (It’s worth noting that under its media rights rules, the PGA Tour has the right to reject such televised offers and often charges a fee in exchange for signing media rights.)

One way to ensure people watch is to provide a sense of scarcity – making those at home feel like they’re missing out no Watch. Regardless of how it plays out, this is Rolap’s idea. But what does scarcity actually look like in the winter of 2025?

It looks like golf made for TV – packed with content.