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Dedicated Sky Sports golf channel

Westy said:
So the ideas posted above wouldn't cost them any more money then ?

Feherty, Big Break, Golf Course Reviews, Rounds with celebrities, coaching programmes etc. They can get\do those at no extra cost then ? Sorry that's just rubbish !!
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I think you make statement without foundation. Sky has numerous contracts with US broadcasters and the PGA Tour directly as they do with European Tour. Sky also has a large amount of influence and financial input to many of these tour's events that negotiating any additional content would be done by re-negotiating the contact and indicating that they would increase the rights bids at the next renewal. Same as the did with Premier League football, Superleage Rugby and the cricket contracts. All of these had additional content added in the form of magazine type shows and did they result in PPV rugby and cricket? No.
I was involved in the project to look at stand alone marquee sports in 2009 and I think I am well placed to make the statements about about why it didn't happen.
 
Greg, understand you obviously know more about this than I. I'm just going on what's in the thread.

I'm just saying that on the surface financially there seems to be a case for it. But I haven't seen why it wasn't pursued. I think it was stated that it wasn't for financial reasons, so why ?
 
Westy said:
Greg, understand you obviously know more about this than I. I'm just going on what's in the thread.

I'm just saying that on the surface financially there seems to be a case for it. But I haven't seen why it wasn't pursued. I think it was stated that it wasn't for financial reasons, so why ?
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Yes, it was for financial reasons but not the kind that implicate the subscriber to increased costs. The return on investment of any project has to fall in to very strict guidelines. The fact that we already have 4 sports channels broadcasting the core events meant that moving these to a standalone EPG the effort would outweigh the benefit (as there is no benefit of simply moving content), so there was a massive gap in the RoI case immediately and the result was that there would be years before the RoI was met. No business would go with a business case like that.

Val, I tried my best, there was a lot of pen chucking and laptop lid slamming the day the outcome of the analysis was made.
 
ok right. Now I understand.

I'm a IT Programme Director, so I understand the situation. Been there many times myself. Months worth of hard work turns into nothing. But at least you get the right decision for the company. Frustrating as it is.
 
Yeah, it's soul destroying when you think you have built a strong business case and the exec board just shoot you down in flames because you haven't thought of something minute but has a large impact - I guess that's why they get the big bucks.
All I can say is that the idea hasn't been taken off the table completely, when I was looking through programme documentation last week I noticed a GCC review (assuming that GC still means Golf Channel Concept on the project roadmap).

Someone earlier in the thread mooted a Golf AM program and this was something that one of the senior PMs suggested and one of the [non golf playing] execs said "yeah, but Football and Cricket people have a sense of humour so they get it"... I was speechless.
 
A dedicated Golf Channel would be brilliant, as covered in most of the posts you could have:-

Coverage of all the tours, Europe, USA, Asia for both the men and women both amateur and Pro.
A hints and tips programme
Something that covers the top 100 courses in the UK, Europe
Player profiles
Equipment reviews
A revamped version of, Shells world of golf, where two players go head to head over 18 holes
A section where people send in videos asking for help in their swing
Golf related news and events

The list could go on and on.

Start a mail campaign to sky to press the point, Westwoods got a 3 shot lead in the Nordea and should a European win the US open it puts golf in the spot light for all the good reasons.
 
Back to the content ideas for a dedicated golf channel, I have to say that for the 10 days I was in the states last year, I really enjoyed the Golf Channel, but, even they had to run loads of repeats of recent programming to fill time in the evening. I must have flicked on to see the same episode of Big Break Ireland at least half a dozen times.

The Morning Drive was good, and kind of makes the point that there is a way of doing a witty daily golf show - they never seemed short of subjects to cover and it didn't seem contrived even on days when there was no PGA tournament play.

I'd quite happily just take the US version of this channel if it was available. The PGA tour is much more international now, whereas 10 ears ago it would not have interested me.
 
Monty_Brown said:
Back to the content ideas for a dedicated golf channel, I have to say that for the 10 days I was in the states last year, I really enjoyed the Golf Channel, but, even they had to run loads of repeats of recent programming to fill time in the evening. I must have flicked on to see the same episode of Big Break Ireland at least half a dozen times.

The Morning Drive was good, and kind of makes the point that there is a way of doing a witty daily golf show - they never seemed short of subjects to cover and it didn't seem contrived even on days when there was no PGA tournament play.

I'd quite happily just take the US version of this channel if it was available. The PGA tour is much more international now, whereas 10 years ago it would not have interested me.
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I have to say the Morning Drive was a great programme but If it was done here I'd never see it till the weekend however given that Friday is cut day and Sat moving day it would be good Sat and Sunday morning programmes.
 
GreiginFife said:
Yeah, it's soul destroying when you think you have built a strong business case and the exec board just shoot you down in flames because you haven't thought of something minute but has a large impact - I guess that's why they get the big bucks.
All I can say is that the idea hasn't been taken off the table completely, when I was looking through programme documentation last week I noticed a GCC review (assuming that GC still means Golf Channel Concept on the project roadmap).

Someone earlier in the thread mooted a Golf AM program and this was something that one of the senior PMs suggested and one of the [non golf playing] execs said "yeah, but Football and Cricket people have a sense of humour so they get it"... I was speechless.
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Some interesting insights and much appreciated. As a concept though, especially in the winter months when there is little or no live golf, wouldn't there still be a place for a magazine type show, hosted by some of the golfing presenters. I know Sky has Euro Tour Weekly and Inside the PGA which are made and licensed by Euro tour productions and the USPGA and there is also Golfing World which I think is independantly made. However these tend to focus solely on the main tours and a magazine concept give so much more scope. Visits to clubs, player interviews, coaching, in depth discussions (woods to win more majors than Jack etc). The list is endless. Surely an itch for golfers suffering winter withdrawal blues without the need for a stand alone channel and with a degree of cost effectiveness.
 
Call me a cynic but the Golf Channell was 'Free to Air' on Sky. In other words you didnt have to subscribe to receive it. Maybe the fact that I (and I would guess a few others) watched it without having to pay meant they put a stop to it?

Setanta Golf was a different channel which they charged for, along with Setanta Sports and News. Good value IMO at around £12 per month. Setanta went belly up in the uk I believe.

Going back the thread, it would be good thing. IMO, Sky should offer sport orientated channells. I dont want to see Rugby, Cricket, wind surfing, iron man and Aussie fitness prgrams. No thanks! Couldnt care less about the footi either tbh.

One channel for golf at say £15 pm would be fine. Include all the programs that have been posted previously including (from the Golf channells old listings):
The Big Break
Playing Lessons with the Pros
Golf Channell Central (news)
The Haney Project

Get rid of the crap that the Golf Channell had such as the K10 driver and the short game wizard adverts. What a load of bull!
 
Wish we still had the Golf channel.

I would recommend the Golf Channel VOD library. They have all the shows available to stream for free. Got through a good few of the big break series and seen a few current PGA pros try to get their big break.

Tommy 2 gloves Gainey and Matt Every were on the show. Tommy Gainey shanked an approach on the road hole at St andrews, hit a van on the road and bounced back in bounds. If it wasnt for the van they reckon he would have been straight through the window of a tartan shop.



http://www.golfchannel.com/tv/#allShowsSec
 
Mattyboy said:
Call me a cynic but the Golf Channell was 'Free to Air' on Sky. In other words you didnt have to subscribe to receive it. Maybe the fact that I (and I would guess a few others) watched it without having to pay meant they put a stop to it?

Setanta Golf was a different channel which they charged for, along with Setanta Sports and News. Good value IMO at around £12 per month. Setanta went belly up in the uk I believe.

Going back the thread, it would be good thing. IMO, Sky should offer sport orientated channells. I dont want to see Rugby, Cricket, wind surfing, iron man and Aussie fitness prgrams. No thanks! Couldnt care less about the footi either tbh.

One channel for golf at say £15 pm would be fine. Include all the programs that have been posted previously including (from the Golf channells old listings):
The Big Break
Playing Lessons with the Pros
Golf Channell Central (news)
The Haney Project

Get rid of the crap that the Golf Channell had such as the K10 driver and the short game wizard adverts. What a load of bull!
Click to expand...

Easy to say good value at an extra £15 per month however on top of a subsrciption including sports, movies, HD and multiroom it becomes pretty expensive, stick ESPN, 3D and a second multiroom you could be well over £100 before you even have a phone or broadband.

If it was £15 extra for me to take it something else would have to give for me to have it.

I know this is all hypothetical all the same but worth thinking about
 
Golf Channel VOD library - Didn't know they had one. Nice one slicer

Found it now, guess what I'm going to be doing doing for the next few weeks.​
:thup:
 
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