Bay Hill broadcast to feature more player-caddie chatter

ORLANDO, Fla. — The Arnold Palmer Invitational will have fewer commercials and more emphasis on data and player-caddie interactions as part of a pilot program a key sponsor has endorsed.

Instead of Mastercard — the presenting sponsor — having a 30-second commercial, it will get brand visibility through various graphics on the broadcast that show anything from the leaderboard to player factoids and statistics.

PGA Tour Commissioner Jay Monahan said the move is another response to a “Fan Forward” survey of some 50,000 people who indicated what innovations they wanted to see on the broadcast and on the golf course.

That already has led to more player interviews during the competition — known as the “walk and talk” down the fairway — and showing fewer shots with no real consequences.

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The tour said more conversations between players and caddies was one of the top responses in the survey of casual and core fans, along with being presented more data over certain shots.

“We’ve heard from fans that they want to see more player-caddie interaction, they want to see more data, they want to understand more data,” he said. “Well, they’re going to get that uninterrupted, they’re going to get it unfiltered, and it’s going to give them kind of an inside look or inside scoop as to what’s happening in real-time.

“It’s a real credit to Mastercard to be thinking about the presence that they have in the broadcast, their commercial load, and adjusting and doing something that give our fans something they will really enjoy.”

Monahan said the tour has not yet reached out to other tournament sponsors but that “it could lead to more” depending on how it goes.

Among the changes this year, particularly in the broadcast, is building stories around making the cut on Friday. Last week in the Cognizant Classic turned out to be a good example when Joe Highsmith made a 5-foot par putt on his final hole to make the cut.

He followed with a 64-64 weekend to become the first player in nine years to make the cut on the number and go on to win.

Bay Hill is one of the three signature events with 72-man fields that have a 36-hole cut. Monahan said there has been no discussion to adding a 36-hole cut to the other five signature events, though he did not rule it out.

As for other innovations, Monahan said the Player Advisory Council was to meet Tuesday afternoon to discuss possible changes to the FedEx Cup finale at the Tour Championship.

The tour is looking at a format that includes some form of brackets, even if that doesn’t include match play. Also under consideration is restoring the Tour Championship as a trophy separate from who wins the FedEx Cup.

It was unclear if the PAC – and ultimately the full PGA Tour board – could agree on a change before the Tour Championship the last week in August.

“I can’t say if it’s absolutely going to happen, but it’s a goal,” Monahan said. “We’re going to make sure that the moves that we’re making respond to fans, that the players themselves believe in and have advocated for, before we make any change. That’s why this is probably a longer process than you would have imagined it being.”

He offered no update on the negotiations with the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, the backer of rival LIV Golf. Monahan, Tiger Woods and Adam Scott met with President Donald Trump and Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the PIF governor, last month with an eye toward unifying the best players in golf.

He said in the Fan Forward survey, 70% said they want to see golf unified gain, and that 32% only wanted to see PIF invest in PGA Tour Enterprises.

The PGA Tour stages The Players Championship next week at the TPC Sawgrass, while LIV Golf resumes its schedule this week in Hong Kong and next week in Singapore. It was increasingly unlikely for any movement on a deal by the Masters.