Analyst David Feherty, shown here on the 18th during the final round of the 2018 Dell Technologies Championship at TPC Boston in Norton, Massachusetts, signed on late for LIV Golf. (Photo: Fred Kfoury III/Icon Sportswire via AP Images)
LIV had 20 international partners to broadcast events in 160 different countries, but failed to secure a domestic TV deal in the United States. Instead, American viewers streamed the series on YouTube and LIV’s website.
One of the biggest issues golf fans in the states have with PGA Tour broadcasts is the oversized commercial load and lack of golf actually shown. With zero commercials on the live stream – aside from some in-house LIV promotion – and 48 players all on the course at one time, it was easy for LIV to succeed in that sense. Viewers saw a lot of golf, and the power of the PIF was shown with how quick LIV was able to create a solid visual production.
That said, the broadcast talent, for lack of a better word, fell woefully short. Arlo White’s super-enthused exclamations failed to match the scenes on camera and the overdramatized calls were straight up disingenuous. Jerry Foltz didn’t add much flavor, either. Fan-favorite David Feherty joined late, but wasn’t able to fill the massive holes in the commentary booth. Fairway Feherty might need to pick up the gear again in 2023, because while Bubba Watson had his moments later in the year, this blunder summed up the season for the awkward group of on-course reporters that included Dom Boulet, Su-Ann Heng and Troy Mullins.
Tuff scene. pic.twitter.com/8M3gwMbfJu
— Kyle Porter (@KylePorterCBS) October 29, 2022
Last month, Golfweek reported LIV Golf was nearing a deal to purchase air time for its tournaments with Fox Sports 1. The yet-to-be-finalized deal would have LIV pay for not only the time slot, but also the production cost. LIV called the report “incomplete and inaccurate” at the time, but when specifically asked at the team championship if LIV would be open to paying for tournaments to be aired, COO Atul Khosla didn’t reject the idea.
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