The Open and BBC.

PhilTheFragger said:
Big soft spot for Peter Alliss. could listen to him all day, some great old stories, he obviously knows his stuff and has designed some lovely courses (Castle Combe).
Ken on the Course is always good to watch.

Having said that, also like Radar Riley too
Click to expand...

Ken on the course is good the first time u watch it. But after the 5th time of seeing the same one it gets boring!
 
I hate ads so try and build up a buffer by pausing the coverage while getting food/drink ready or checking the internet etc Then I can fast wind over the ad breaks as and when they come up.
Do this on lots of stuff that's going to have ad breaks not just the golf.
 
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/go...Sports-battling-for-live-coverage-rights.html

Hello to you all...been a while for various reason I have not been here so looking forward to getting going again in the forum.

This thread and the link above make sad reading. In fact its so sad I have done something that I never do...write to the R & A and the BBC on this issue.

The bald facts on all this are that all sport in this country is going back to its real core that are interested in a particular category. As soon as SKY (and this is in no way an anti SKY post..I love the coverage on the ET in particular but I can afford it and more importantly have an interest) started to take sports away from outlets where people might "by accident" come across them then it gets restricted to those that just have an interest.

And to grow anything needs to get exposure to those people that might not even know they might like it. Cricket is the best example of this...1995 Channel 4, 9.5 million people watched the Ashes on TV....The last time on SKY somewhere between 100 and 200 thousand..... and then they wonder why Cricket participation apart from Junior level at school is dropping off....a vast swath of the population is not getting exposed or excited by the sport anymore.

The BBC cant totally be held to blame here...yes it cant compete with the SKY money, and in many ways it just gave up the game in trying but they could have lobbied for more highlights packages.....why a two hour weekly golf programme could not have been negotiated given the heritage and importance the BBC have had with golf over the past years I don't know...but there you are.

I just remember how the exposure of the tournaments from the Masters, at least once a month through to the World Matchplay at Wentworth just made me want to go out and play....I love golf and that was a major part in nurturing that love.

I didn't rant at the R& A and BBC, I one page letter saying similar comments to the above with a finish saying IMO The OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP needs to be on the BBC for bigger golfing reasons than just money....I know money has to be important but if Golf doesn't keep getting new interest it will really go back to how it was in the early and middle part of the 20 Century...perhaps that is what some people want.
 
Last edited:
alexgolf said:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/go...Sports-battling-for-live-coverage-rights.html

Hello to you all...been a while for various reason I have not been here so looking forward to getting going again in the forum.

This thread and the link above make sad reading. In fact its so sad I have done something that I never do...write to the R & A and the BBC on this issue.

The bald facts on all this are that all sport in this country is going back to its real core that are interested in a particular category. As soon as SKY (and this is in no way an anti SKY post..I love the coverage on the ET in particular but I can afford it and more importantly have an interest) started to take sports away from outlets where people might "by accident" come across them then it gets restricted to those that just have an interest.

And to grow anything needs to get exposure to those people that might not even know they might like it. Cricket is the best example of this...1995 Channel 4, 9.5 million people watched the Ashes on TV....The last time on SKY somewhere between 100 and 200 thousand..... and then they wonder why Cricket participation apart from Junior level at school is dropping off....a vast swath of the population is not getting exposed or excited by the sport anymore.

The BBC cant totally be held to blame here...yes it cant compete with the SKY money, and in many ways it just gave up the game in trying but they could have lobbied for more highlights packages.....why a two hour weekly golf programme could not have been negotiated given the heritage and importance the BBC have had with golf over the past years I don't know...but there you are.

I just remember how the exposure of the tournaments from the Masters, at least once a month through to the World Matchplay at Wentworth just made me want to go out and play....I love golf and that was a major part in nurturing that love.

I didn't rant at the R& A and BBC, I one page letter saying similar comments to the above with a finish saying IMO The OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP needs to be on the BBC for bigger golfing reasons than just money....I know money has to be important but if Golf doesn't keep getting new interest it will really go back to how it was in the early and middle part of the 20 Century...perhaps that is what some people want.
Click to expand...


John Hopkins in The Times says much the same thing today, in an environment where interest in the sport is waning it makes no sense to lose the one big golf tournament on terrestrial TV to pay TV. It also says that one of the main sponsors has made that point to the R&A (think it was HSBC), who have been making a few other comments recently about the state of the game and their commitment. And HSBC also made a point about the fuss over women and clubs hosting the Open when that erupted a couple of years ago, saying they were not happy. And hey presto, a year later the R&A votes to include women. So may be a word from the major blue chip sponsors will ensure it stays on the BBC.
 
Skypilot said:
I hate ads so try and build up a buffer by pausing the coverage while getting food/drink ready or checking the internet etc Then I can fast wind over the ad breaks as and when they come up.
Do this on lots of stuff that's going to have ad breaks not just the golf.
Click to expand...

as do many, which is probably one of the reasons why the BBC Masters Coverage gets 5 times the viewers SKY do for the same event
 
I used to have sky sports and used to watch golf wall to wall. My problem was that all i wanted was golf and not the football, or anything else for that matter. When i realised that i was probably not getting value, (and when will sky wake up to those who only want to pay for what they want to watch), i got rid of it as well as the HD, which i couldn't tell the difference. My wife tells me we are a lot happier now!
 
I too ditched Sky Sports as all I really watched was the rugby and some golf. That said, I believe that Sky should at least get the right to show The Open along with the BBC. They are the ones showing golf week in, week out and so deserve access to the Crown Jewels. There is much said about the cost of bidding for sports rights but, even if it had the money, the BBC cannot and should not clear the schedules for comprehensive sport coverage. Equally, even when they do have the rights, as with 5 live coverage, pretty much any sporting event, however top drawer, is bumped to the digital service for even the most mundane football match.

As an outside option though, I could see BT putting up some big money if Open coverage is put out to bids.
 
Some controversial points. It's brain dump and just an opinion :D:

- golf is long and boring game to watch for the masses. TV rounds take 5 hrs and over 4 days. Only the dedicated will watch.
- golf is a game kids have to take-up rather than 'adopt' like football and cricket at school
- golf can't really be played anywhere, unlike football, cricket, etc.
- there are so many more things to do today, golf is fighting a losing battle
- there are no kids golf courses (that I know of) - why not? I would love to take my boys to a junior course for them to learn. I'm talking 5-10 yr old range
- having a token golf programme on terrestrial BBC will be fruitless as no-one will watch as they are often shoved right back into the witching hour
- cricket participation has long been in decline even before Sky came in. Cricket takes a whole day to play, people just don't have the time nowadays unfortunately to commit to it.
- why is it that football is still a success even though no live Prem/Championships games on terrestrial?
 
Piece said:
Some controversial points. It's brain dump and just an opinion :D:

- golf is long and boring game to watch for the masses. TV rounds take 5 hrs and over 4 days. Only the dedicated will watch.
- golf is a game kids have to take-up rather than 'adopt' like football and cricket at school
- golf can't really be played anywhere, unlike football, cricket, etc.
- there are so many more things to do today, golf is fighting a losing battle
- there are no kids golf courses (that I know of) - why not? I would love to take my boys to a junior course for them to learn. I'm talking 5-10 yr old range
- having a token golf programme on terrestrial BBC will be fruitless as no-one will watch as they are often shoved right back into the witching hour
- cricket participation has long been in decline even before Sky came in. Cricket takes a whole day to play, people just don't have the time nowadays unfortunately to commit to it.
- why is it that football is still a success even though no live Prem/Championships games on terrestrial?
Click to expand...

Some good points here piece....some thoughts

Point 1. Agree with this in a way as although I love golf, I never watch the first two sometimes three days of an American tournament because it IS boring. If you remember the BEEB in the old days really only did the weekend and the last 9 holes or so of the tournaments they covered which is the prime thing to watch.

And yes golf needs to adapt the tournament styles they play....AND SPEED UP!!

Point 2/3/4/5. Yes golf is taken up mostly because the parents play. The route I came to golf was watching on the telly and I had a new Muni open near me but that wave seems to have gone. And remember this....Sport in school is also fighting a battle as its ok till kids are @ 13 but as soon as final exams start coming into view, the schools are so petrified about not keeping their place on the league tables, Sport gets forgotten in many places and the scholarship subjects take precedent.

Now near me in Sussex at the Cuckfield 9 holer/driving range they do Saturday groups for Kids that work fantastically. Bit of golf on the course/bit of golf on the driving range/bit of book work in the Clubhouse...they have their own web site and everything...its fantastic...we need more of that....Don't any of your local course do Junior get together??

Point 6...Don't agree...well I do in a way as It is tokenism but how good is the coverage and at least it is something...it could lead to more again...anything is better than nothing.

Point 7...Actually you can say that about ALL team sports...we need better coaches and opportunities to join....there are to many other things to do!!

Point 8...im not so sure Football at grass routes is as successful as before....When I was growing up there were FAR more teams and leagues than there are today...participation is dropping here as well...and many people are starting to dump SKY SPORTS....Football has a problem that the coverage it gets and the money in the Prem League covers up IMO
 
alexgolf said:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/go...Sports-battling-for-live-coverage-rights.html

Hello to you all...been a while for various reason I have not been here so looking forward to getting going again in the forum.

This thread and the link above make sad reading. In fact its so sad I have done something that I never do...write to the R & A and the BBC on this issue.

The bald facts on all this are that all sport in this country is going back to its real core that are interested in a particular category. As soon as SKY (and this is in no way an anti SKY post..I love the coverage on the ET in particular but I can afford it and more importantly have an interest) started to take sports away from outlets where people might "by accident" come across them then it gets restricted to those that just have an interest.

And to grow anything needs to get exposure to those people that might not even know they might like it. Cricket is the best example of this...1995 Channel 4, 9.5 million people watched the Ashes on TV....The last time on SKY somewhere between 100 and 200 thousand..... and then they wonder why Cricket participation apart from Junior level at school is dropping off....a vast swath of the population is not getting exposed or excited by the sport anymore.

The BBC cant totally be held to blame here...yes it cant compete with the SKY money, and in many ways it just gave up the game in trying but they could have lobbied for more highlights packages.....why a two hour weekly golf programme could not have been negotiated given the heritage and importance the BBC have had with golf over the past years I don't know...but there you are.

I just remember how the exposure of the tournaments from the Masters, at least once a month through to the World Matchplay at Wentworth just made me want to go out and play....I love golf and that was a major part in nurturing that love.

I didn't rant at the R& A and BBC, I one page letter saying similar comments to the above with a finish saying IMO The OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP needs to be on the BBC for bigger golfing reasons than just money....I know money has to be important but if Golf doesn't keep getting new interest it will really go back to how it was in the early and middle part of the 20 Century...perhaps that is what some people want.
Click to expand...

Yes, its got to be more than a coincidence that the two sports which have almost entirely disappeared off of peasant tv are now witnessing falling participation levels.

Like you, i got interested in golf on a diet of the PGA, the B&H Invitational, the British Masters, the Loch Lomond Invitational / Scottish Open, the Open and the World Matchplay. 15-20 years ago there was plenty of the European Tour season played in Britain. Now there's hardly any tournaments. So not only is there not much to watch on peasant tv but there also isnt a lot to go and watch live.
 
Piece said:
Some controversial points. It's brain dump and just an opinion :D:

- golf is long and boring game to watch for the masses. TV rounds take 5 hrs and over 4 days. Only the dedicated will watch.
- golf is a game kids have to take-up rather than 'adopt' like football and cricket at school
- golf can't really be played anywhere, unlike football, cricket, etc.
- there are so many more things to do today, golf is fighting a losing battle
- there are no kids golf courses (that I know of) - why not? I would love to take my boys to a junior course for them to learn. I'm talking 5-10 yr old range
- having a token golf programme on terrestrial BBC will be fruitless as no-one will watch as they are often shoved right back into the witching hour
- cricket participation has long been in decline even before Sky came in. Cricket takes a whole day to play, people just don't have the time nowadays unfortunately to commit to it.
- why is it that football is still a success even though no live Prem/Championships games on terrestrial?
Click to expand...

No, but there's Match of the Day, internationals and FA Cup games. Add in the influence of the media telling everyone that the PL is the greatest thing since sliced bread and a few other inherited factors and its not surprising that Football still thrives.
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/golf/30422698

Slightly odd comparison but these numbers are from SPORT ENGLAND....Of course Cycling has been on "accessible" television more in the past few years, and it doesn't take so long to do....My friend says to his wife he will be back in two hours or so to look after their kids etc, and he is back in that time after, for him, a great ride, workout and personal time activity.

I am never back at the time I think I will be for golf even if I add a bit on....I want to be social, not rush off after a round, get there early to practice and warm up....Golf takes time....I think actually the game is up and in the next ten years we will see a big decline. Courses packing up and the game retreating for the way it boomed from @ the early 1980's

I don't think we in the UK really understand the Tiger Woods factor for the US and the way that he has over the past few years skewed the numbers...that's one of the reasons when he had all his problems, NIKE (who know a thing or two about business) stood by him.

Of course all these things are cyclical and it may be a blip for the game and hopefully for the rest of my time playing i will have access to what I want but I fear for the future...and taking the OPEN away from "accessible" telly really will be another thing that IMO Golf does not need.
 
alexgolf said:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/golf/30422698

Slightly odd comparison but these numbers are from SPORT ENGLAND....Of course Cycling has been on "accessible" television more in the past few years, and it doesn't take so long to do....My friend says to his wife he will be back in two hours or so to look after their kids etc, and he is back in that time after, for him, a great ride, workout and personal time activity.

I am never back at the time I think I will be for golf even if I add a bit on....I want to be social, not rush off after a round, get there early to practice and warm up....Golf takes time....I think actually the game is up and in the next ten years we will see a big decline. Courses packing up and the game retreating for the way it boomed from @ the early 1980's

I don't think we in the UK really understand the Tiger Woods factor for the US and the way that he has over the past few years skewed the numbers...that's one of the reasons when he had all his problems, NIKE (who know a thing or two about business) stood by him.

Of course all these things are cyclical and it may be a blip for the game and hopefully for the rest of my time playing i will have access to what I want but I fear for the future...and taking the OPEN away from "accessible" telly really will be another thing that IMO Golf does not need.
Click to expand...

I agree with you about things being cyclical and the Tiger Woods effect. How the game copes when he retires will be interesting. However, once the Open is lost to pay tv, it'll be gone forever. It is a crossing of the Rubicon, and will be an irrevocable decision.
 
As I mentioned earlier in the thread, the sport is already a long way past a point of no return. Future audiences (and future golfers; children, teenagers, young adults) aren't watching broadcast TV. They're choosing streaming video services to watch specific content on demand instead.

The days of people being forced or accidentally watching and discovering a sport because it's the only thing on TV are long gone. The governing bodies need to look at other ways to generate interest, those activities then drive new audiences to the places where golf can be seen through opt-in demand.

Adapt or die.

I used to work in broadcast television and am proud to have done things with the BBC. I like the BBC a lot but I also think that showing golf on BBC isn't a magic solution to the crisis facing golf. The problem with golf is that it isn't being marketed to new audiences and new, future, viewing cultures. Fix that and an audience will follow.
 
Jimaroid said:
As I mentioned earlier in the thread, the sport is already a long way past a point of no return. Future audiences (and future golfers; children, teenagers, young adults) aren't watching broadcast TV. They're choosing streaming video services to watch specific content on demand instead.

The days of people being forced or accidentally watching and discovering a sport because it's the only thing on TV are long gone. The governing bodies need to look at other ways to generate interest, those activities then drive new audiences to the places where golf can be seen through opt-in demand.

Adapt or die.

I used to work in broadcast television and am proud to have done things with the BBC. I like the BBC a lot but I also think that showing golf on BBC isn't a magic solution to the crisis facing golf. The problem with golf is that it isn't being marketed to new audiences and new, future, viewing cultures. Fix that and an audience will follow.
Click to expand...

Very good post.....some interesting points. Have to go to work now so will look back later...its such a shame...there is more golf on the telly now than ever but only in the main people that are already interested in it watch.

I know its twee but the Peter Alliss pro celebrity's from Gleneagles and his " around with Alliss" tv show in its time brought more people to the game rather than watching the first two rounds of some strokeplay tournament that is just tour pros grinding out to make the cut

Have a good day all
 
alexgolf said:
Very good post.....some interesting points. Have to go to work now so will look back later...its such a shame...there is more golf on the telly now than ever but only in the main people that are already interested in it watch.

I know its twee but the Peter Alliss pro celebrity's from Gleneagles and his " around with Alliss" tv show in its time brought more people to the game rather than watching the first two rounds of some strokeplay tournament that is just tour pros grinding out to make the cut

Have a good day all
Click to expand...

Tell me about it! Talk me through Terry Wogan's 50 foot putt!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

KenL
Open play handicaps and club opens
Replies
16
Views
872
simsini
simsini
VVega
ShotScope Launch Monitor
Replies
8
Views
569
simsini
simsini
A
motocaddy m series
Replies
10
Views
3K
adasko
A
D
Dinsdale GC Closing
Replies
19
Views
979
Hobbit
Hobbit
Oddsocks
Void putters.
Replies
0
Views
696
Oddsocks
Oddsocks
Top