Golf coverage on
Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world.
The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the Fo ...
properties have occurred occasionally since 1999. From
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
through
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
, its
regional sports network
In the United States and Canada, a regional sports network (RSN) is a cable television channel (many of which are also distributed on direct broadcast satellite services) that presents sports programming to a local market or geographical region.
...
group
Fox Sports Networks
Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...
(FSN) sub-licensed early-round coverage of
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...
events from
Golf Channel
Golf Channel (also verbally referred to as simply Golf) is an American sports television television network, network owned by the NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Founded in Birmingham, Alabama, it is currently ...
(a network in which Fox was an early investor).
From 2015 to June 2020, Fox served as the broadcaster of the national open tournaments and amateur championships of the
United States Golf Association
The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rules ...
(USGA), including the
U.S. Open — one of the four
Men's major golf championships
The men's major golf championships, commonly known as the major championships, and often referred to simply as the majors, are the most prestigious tournaments in golf. Historically, the national open and amateur championships of Great Britain a ...
, under a 12-year deal. Coverage aired on the
Fox broadcast network
The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations an ...
,
Fox Sports 1
Fox Sports 1 (FS1) is an American pay television channel owned by the Fox Sports Media Group, a unit of Fox Corporation. FS1 replaced the motorsports network Speed on August 17, 2013, at the same time that its companion channel Fox Sports 2 ...
,
Fox Sports 2
Fox Sports 2 (FS2) is an American List of sports television channels, sports-oriented pay television television channel, channel owned by the Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports Media Group, a unit of Fox Corporation. The channel is based a ...
, and
Fox Deportes
Fox Deportes (formerly Fox Sports en Español and stylized in all caps as FOX Deportes) is an American pay television network dedicated to broadcasting sports-related programming in Spanish, aimed at the Hispanic population in the United States. ...
. In late-June 2020, however, Fox announced that it would opt out of the contract, and sell the remainder to former USGA broadcast television rightsholder
NBC Sports
NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...
.
Background
Early Fox Sports golf involvement
Fox Sports partnered with
Greg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO (born 10 February 1955) is an Australian entrepreneur and retired professional golfer who spent 331 weeks as world number one in the 1980s and 1990s. He won 89 professional tournaments, including 20 PGA Tour tournament ...
in the early 1990s to create the World Golf Tour, which would have consisted of six events televised on Fox. However, the proposed events were met with legal issues (including a threat by
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour (stylized in all capital letters as PGA TOUR by its officials) is the organizer of professional golf tours in the United States and North America. It organizes most of the events on the flagship annual series of tournaments also k ...
commissioner
Tim Finchem
Timothy W. Finchem (born April 19, 1947) is an American lawyer and retired golf administrator, who served as commissioner of golf's PGA Tour from 1994 to 2016. He served in the White House for two years during the administration of President Jimm ...
to suspend any golfer who participates). In 1996, Fox acquired a minority stake in
Golf Channel
Golf Channel (also verbally referred to as simply Golf) is an American sports television television network, network owned by the NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. Founded in Birmingham, Alabama, it is currently ...
.
Fox Sports bid for a portion of the PGA Tour's television rights starting in
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...
. Although it did not gain the broadcast package (which was divided among the
Big Three networks
In the United States, there are three major traditional commercial broadcast television networks — CBS (Columbia Broadcasting System), NBC (National Broadcasting Company), and ABC (American Broadcasting Company) — that due to their longev ...
), Golf Channel would
simulcast
Simulcast (a portmanteau of simultaneous broadcast) is the broadcasting of programmes/programs or events across more than one resolution, bitrate or medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at exactly the same time (that is, simultane ...
its early-round coverage on Fox's
regional sports network
In the United States and Canada, a regional sports network (RSN) is a cable television channel (many of which are also distributed on direct broadcast satellite services) that presents sports programming to a local market or geographical region.
...
s group
Fox Sports Networks
Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...
, as they had wider carriage. These simulcasts ended after 2002, when the PGA Tour's cable rights were acquired by
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
and
USA Network
USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...
. Fox had also sold its minority stakes in Golf Channel and
Outdoor Life Network
OLN (formerly Outdoor Life Network) is a Canadian English-language Category A specialty channel. OLN primarily broadcasts factual-based and adventure-related reality programming aimed at male audiences. OLN is wholly owned by Rogers Sports & ...
to
Comcast
Comcast Corporation (formerly known as American Cable Systems and Comcast Holdings),Before the AT&T merger in 2001, the parent company was Comcast Holdings Corporation. Comcast Holdings Corporation now refers to a subsidiary of Comcast Corpora ...
, as part of its acquisition of its stake in
Speedvision
Speed was an American sports-oriented cable and satellite television network that was owned by the Fox Sports Media Group division of 21st Century Fox. The network was dedicated to motorsports programming, including auto racing, as well as aut ...
.
In 2011, Fox Sports gained the rights to the
CVS Caremark Charity Classic
The CVS Health Charity Classic is a professional golf tournament. It is contested annually as a one-day, three-person team event. Each team is made up of one player from each of three Tours: PGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions, and LPGA Tour. The top tw ...
, which is an unofficial money event on the PGA Tour, and had been previously televised by Golf Channel. The coverage aired on
Fox Sports Net
Fox Sports Networks (FSN), formerly known as Fox Sports Net, was the collective name for a group of regional sports channels in the United States. Formed in 1996 by News Corporation, the networks were acquired by The Walt Disney Company on Mar ...
, with
Kraig Kann Kraig Kann (born on May 3, 1966 in LaGrange, Illinois) is a former on-air personality on Golf Channel, former chief communications officer of the LPGA, and current Managing Director of Kann Advisory Group and Host on SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio.Golf Ch ...
hosting. Fox did not renew its rights for 2012.
USGA coverage
On August 6, 2013, Fox Sports announced a 12-year, $1.1 billion deal to broadcast the open tournaments and amateur championships of the
USGA
The United States Golf Association (USGA) is the United States national association of golf courses, clubs and facilities and the governing body of golf for the U.S. and Mexico. Together with The R&A, the USGA produces and interprets the rules ...
, including the
U.S. Open,
U.S. Senior Open
The U.S. Senior Open is one of the five major championships in senior golf, introduced in 1980. It is administered by the United States Golf Association (USGA) and is recognized as a major championship by both the PGA Tour Champions and the Eu ...
, and
U.S. Women's Open
The U.S. Women's Open, one of 15 national golf championships conducted by the United States Golf Association (USGA), is the oldest of the LPGA Tour's five major championships, which includes the Chevron Championship, Women's PGA Championship, W ...
, beginning in 2015. Fox would replace
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
and
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). The ...
as the rightsholders of the events.
NBC's lead analyst
Johnny Miller
John Laurence Miller (born April 29, 1947) is an American former professional golfer. He was one of the top players in the world during the mid-1970s. He was the first to shoot 63 in a major championship to win the 1973 U.S. Open, and he ra ...
expressed disappointment at the loss, saying that he "had a feeling" NBC would not retain rights, and that Fox would not be able to "fall out of a tree and do the U.S. Open."
As a prelude to the new package, Fox televised the 2014
Franklin Templeton Shootout
The QBE Shootout is a team golf event that takes place on the PGA Tour as an unofficial money event. It was originally played during the off-season, but now it is played during the wrap-around season's December break.
The event began in 1989, as t ...
, debuting its lead commentary team of
Joe Buck
Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster.
The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for the network's Nation ...
and
Greg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO (born 10 February 1955) is an Australian entrepreneur and retired professional golfer who spent 331 weeks as world number one in the 1980s and 1990s. He won 89 professional tournaments, including 20 PGA Tour tournament ...
. Fox's
first U.S. Open had a total of 38.5 hours of coverage, with 22 on Thursday and Friday, and 16.5 hours on Saturday and Sunday; the Fox Sports 1 cable network had a total of 16 hours of coverage on Thursday and Friday. The Fox broadcast network had a total of 22.5 hours of coverage Thursday through Sunday, with six hours Thursday and Friday, and 16.5 hours Saturday and Sunday. Fox utilized a number of new technologies during its production, including
drone
Drone most commonly refers to:
* Drone (bee), a male bee, from an unfertilized egg
* Unmanned aerial vehicle
* Unmanned surface vehicle, watercraft
* Unmanned underwater vehicle or underwater drone
Drone, drones or The Drones may also refer to:
...
flyovers, a camera-equipped
RC car
'Radio-controlled cars'' (or RC cars for short) are miniature model cars, vans, buses, trucks or buggies that can be controlled from a distance using a specialized transmitter or remote. The term "RC" has been used to mean both "remote contro ...
for ground perspectives, and new graphics—including a live shot tracer, an
augmented reality
Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience that combines the real world and computer-generated content. The content can span multiple sensory modalities, including visual, auditory, haptic, somatosensory and olfactory. AR can be de ...
display of green contours, and a persistent top-5 leaderboard displayed in the bottom-right of the screen.
Fox's coverage received mixed reviews by critics and viewers, noting technical issues with on-air graphics during early coverage of the first round, on-air personnel (including the chemistry between Buck and Norman, and use of NFL reporters such as
Curt Menefee
Curt Menefee (born July 22, 1965) is an American sportscaster who is currently the play-by-play commentator for Seattle Seahawks preseason football, play-by-play commentator of the 2020 XFL on Fox, the 2022 return of the USFL on Fox and is the ...
), and missed shots due to poor camera angles or other on-air segments, although Buck did receive positive reviews by some, as well as Fox's technical innovations.
In the lead-up to the 2016 U.S. Open, Norman was dismissed by Fox, and replaced by
Paul Azinger
Paul William Azinger (born January 6, 1960) is an American professional golfer and TV golf He won twelve times on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 1993 PGA Championship. He spent almost 300 weeks in the top-10 of the Official ...
.
End of coverage
On June 29, 2020, it was announced that Fox Sports had opted out of the remaining seven years of its contract to cover USGA events, and had sold the remainder of the contract to
NBC Sports
NBC Sports is an American programming division of the broadcast network NBC, owned and operated by NBC Sports Group division of NBCUniversal and subsidiary of Comcast. The division is responsible for sports broadcasts on the network, and its d ...
. The re-scheduling of the
2020 U.S. Open to September due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...
had caused conflicts with Fox's football coverage, and the USGA ruled out moving the tournament exclusively to cable instead. While the network discussed the possibility of partnering with NBC on the 2020 tournament, this eventually "led to a broader conversation and eventual agreement for NBCUniversal to take over the USGA media rights".
Theme music
Fox did not carry over "In Celebration of Man", the
Yanni
Yiannis Chryssomallis ( el, Γιάννης Χρυσομάλλης; born November 14, 1954), known professionally as Yanni ( ), is a Greek-American composer, keyboardist, pianist, and music producer.
Yanni continues to use the musical shorthand ...
-composed music that had been used by NBC for its U.S. Open coverage, choosing to commission film composer
Brian Tyler
Brian Theodore Tyler (born May 8, 1972) is an American composer, conductor, arranger, and record producer, best known for his film, television, and video game scores. In his 24-year career, Tyler has scored '' Transformers: Prime'', ''Eagle E ...
to compose new music (after acquiring rights to
The Open Championship
The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...
beginning in
2016
File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...
, NBC instated an updated version of "In Celebration of Man" as its theme music for the tournament).
Tyler explained that his composition was intended to "capture the epic struggle, the challenge, the history, the heartbreak, and the elation of competitive golf," and acknowledged that "Sports and music have always had an important connection for me. I love the way iconic sports themes evoke the spirit of sporting events and can provide dramatic impact and nostalgic memory."
Commentators
On April 23, 2014,
Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world.
The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the Fo ...
announced that
Greg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO (born 10 February 1955) is an Australian entrepreneur and retired professional golfer who spent 331 weeks as world number one in the 1980s and 1990s. He won 89 professional tournaments, including 20 PGA Tour tournament ...
would join
Joe Buck
Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster.
The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for the network's Nation ...
as its lead golf commentary team.
Buck and Norman worked together for the first time at the 2014 U.S. Open, where Fox produced studio programming that aired against ESPN and NBC's studio shows.
2015 U.S. Open
On November 18, 2014, in advance of its coverage of the
Franklin Templeton Shootout
The QBE Shootout is a team golf event that takes place on the PGA Tour as an unofficial money event. It was originally played during the off-season, but now it is played during the wrap-around season's December break.
The event began in 1989, as t ...
, Fox announced the full layout of its golf team.
*Booth announcers:
Joe Buck
Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster.
The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for the network's Nation ...
,
Greg Norman
Gregory John Norman AO (born 10 February 1955) is an Australian entrepreneur and retired professional golfer who spent 331 weeks as world number one in the 1980s and 1990s. He won 89 professional tournaments, including 20 PGA Tour tournament ...
*Tower announcers:
Brad Faxon
Bradford John Faxon Jr. (born August 1, 1961) is an American professional golfer. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour.
Early years and amateur career
Faxon was born in Oceanport, New Jersey and raised in Barrington, Rhode Island. He attended Fu ...
,
Corey Pavin
Corey Allen Pavin (born November 16, 1959) is an American professional golfer who has played on the PGA Tour and currently on the PGA Tour Champions. He spent over 150 weeks in the top 10 of the Official World Golf Ranking between 1986 and 1997 ...
,
Tom Weiskopf
Thomas Daniel Weiskopf (November 9, 1942 – August 20, 2022) was an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and the Champions Tour. His most successful decade was the 1970s. He won 16 PGA Tour titles between 1968 and 1982, inclu ...
*On-course reporters:
Juli Inkster
Juli Inkster (born Juli Simpson; June 24, 1960) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. With a professional career spanning 29 years to date, Inkster's 31 wins rank her second in wins among all active players on the LPGA ...
,
Steve Flesch
Stephen J. Flesch (born May 23, 1967) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He was a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, and worked briefly as a TV golf analyst for Fox Sports and Golf Channel before joi ...
,
Scott McCarron
Scott Michael McCarron (born July 10, 1965) is an American professional golfer who was formerly a member of the PGA Tour but now plays on the PGA Tour Champions.
McCarron was born in Sacramento, California and graduated from Vintage High School i ...
,
Charles Davis,
Jay Delsing
Jay Delsing (born October 17, 1960) is an American professional golfer.
Delsing was born in St. Louis, Missouri. He played college golf at UCLA with Corey Pavin, Steve Pate, Tom Pernice Jr., and Duffy Waldorf. He graduated from UCLA in 1983 w ...
*
Rules analyst
A color commentator or expert commentator is a sports commentator who assists the main (play-by-play) commentator, typically by filling in when play is not in progress. The phrase "colour commentator" is primarily used in Canadian English and the ...
: David Fay
*Course design analyst:
Gil Hanse
Gilbert Hanse (born August 12, 1963) is an American golf course architect. Hanse, along with his business partner Jim Wagner, was selected to design the Rio 2016 Olympic Golf Course, the first Olympic venue to host golf since 1904.
Education
A ...
*Studio Host:
Curt Menefee
Curt Menefee (born July 22, 1965) is an American sportscaster who is currently the play-by-play commentator for Seattle Seahawks preseason football, play-by-play commentator of the 2020 XFL on Fox, the 2022 return of the USFL on Fox and is the ...
*Interviews: Holly Sonders
*Essays:
Shane O'Donoghue
*Featured Group:
Tim Brando,
Mark Brooks,
Natalie Gulbis
Natalie Anne Gulbis (born January 7, 1983) is an American professional golfer who plays on the U.S.-based LPGA Tour.
Golf career
Gulbis was born and raised in the Sacramento, California, area. She has Latvian ancestry. Gulbis started finding ...
,
Buddy Marucci
George Edward "Buddy" Marucci Jr (born March 6, 1952) is an American businessman and amateur golfer. He has played in more than 50 USGA amateur championships, and is perhaps best known for battling 19-year-old Tiger Woods in the final round of the ...
*U.S. Open 360:
Joel Klatt
Joel Klatt (born February 4, 1982) is a college football color commentator and analyst for Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports. Klatt played college football for the University of Colorado at Boulder, University of Colorado (CU) Colorado Buffalo ...
,
Joe Ogilvie
Norman Joseph Ogilvie (born April 8, 1974) is a retired American professional golfer.
Ogilvie was born in Lancaster, Ohio and graduated from Duke University. He played on the PGA Tour and picked up his only win on tour at the U.S. Bank Championsh ...
,
Morgan Pressel
Morgan Pressel (born May 23, 1988) is an American professional golfer and golf commentator who played on the LPGA Tour. In 2001, as a 12-year-old, she became the youngest player to qualify for the U.S. Women's Open. She was the 2005 American Juni ...
, EA Tischler
2016 U.S. Open
In January 2016, Greg Norman was let go by Fox in response to poor reception towards his performance during the U.S. Open, and was replaced by former ESPN analyst
Paul Azinger
Paul William Azinger (born January 6, 1960) is an American professional golfer and TV golf He won twelve times on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 1993 PGA Championship. He spent almost 300 weeks in the top-10 of the Official ...
.
The network's 2016 U.S. Open team:
*Booth announcers:
Joe Buck
Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster.
The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for the network's Nation ...
,
Paul Azinger
Paul William Azinger (born January 6, 1960) is an American professional golfer and TV golf He won twelve times on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 1993 PGA Championship. He spent almost 300 weeks in the top-10 of the Official ...
,
Brad Faxon
Bradford John Faxon Jr. (born August 1, 1961) is an American professional golfer. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour.
Early years and amateur career
Faxon was born in Oceanport, New Jersey and raised in Barrington, Rhode Island. He attended Fu ...
*Tower announcers:
Mark Brooks,
Steve Flesch
Stephen J. Flesch (born May 23, 1967) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He was a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, and worked briefly as a TV golf analyst for Fox Sports and Golf Channel before joi ...
*On-course reporters:
Curtis Strange
Curtis Northrup Strange (born January 30, 1955) is an American professional golfer and TV color commentator. He is the winner of consecutive U.S. Open titles and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. He spent ...
,
Juli Inkster
Juli Inkster (born Juli Simpson; June 24, 1960) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. With a professional career spanning 29 years to date, Inkster's 31 wins rank her second in wins among all active players on the LPGA ...
,
Scott McCarron
Scott Michael McCarron (born July 10, 1965) is an American professional golfer who was formerly a member of the PGA Tour but now plays on the PGA Tour Champions.
McCarron was born in Sacramento, California and graduated from Vintage High School i ...
,
Ken Brown
*Rules analyst: David Fay
*Course design analyst:
Gil Hanse
Gilbert Hanse (born August 12, 1963) is an American golf course architect. Hanse, along with his business partner Jim Wagner, was selected to design the Rio 2016 Olympic Golf Course, the first Olympic venue to host golf since 1904.
Education
A ...
*Studio Host: Holly Sonders
*Interviews: Shane Bacon
*Essays:
Shane O'Donoghue
*Featured Groups Hosts:
Joel Klatt
Joel Klatt (born February 4, 1982) is a college football color commentator and analyst for Fox Sports (United States), Fox Sports. Klatt played college football for the University of Colorado at Boulder, University of Colorado (CU) Colorado Buffalo ...
,
Justin Kutcher
Justin Kutcher is a sportscaster with Fox Sports. He is the play-by-play broadcaster for Atlanta Falcons preseason games, and was formerly the play-by-play announcer for the Washington Wizards on NBC Sports Washington. Kutcher joined Fox Sports in ...
*Featured Groups Analysts: Luke Elvy,
Olin Browne
Olin Douglas Browne (born May 22, 1959) is an American professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour and now plays on the PGA Tour Champions.
Browne was born in Washington, D.C. He graduated from Holderness School in Plymouth, N.H. in 1977. He ...
,
Brett Quigley,
Scott Simpson
2017 U.S. Open
In 2017, Fox made several changes to the commentator team:
*Lead announcers:
Joe Buck
Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster.
The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for the network's Nation ...
,
Paul Azinger
Paul William Azinger (born January 6, 1960) is an American professional golfer and TV golf He won twelve times on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 1993 PGA Championship. He spent almost 300 weeks in the top-10 of the Official ...
,
Brad Faxon
Bradford John Faxon Jr. (born August 1, 1961) is an American professional golfer. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour.
Early years and amateur career
Faxon was born in Oceanport, New Jersey and raised in Barrington, Rhode Island. He attended Fu ...
*Tower announcers:
Shane O'Donoghue,
Darren Clarke
Darren Christopher Clarke, (born 14 August 1968) is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions and has previously played on the European Tour and PGA Tour. He has won 21 tournaments worldwide on a ...
*On-course reporters:
Curtis Strange
Curtis Northrup Strange (born January 30, 1955) is an American professional golfer and TV color commentator. He is the winner of consecutive U.S. Open titles and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. He spent ...
,
Steve Flesch
Stephen J. Flesch (born May 23, 1967) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He was a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, and worked briefly as a TV golf analyst for Fox Sports and Golf Channel before joi ...
,
Juli Inkster
Juli Inkster (born Juli Simpson; June 24, 1960) is an American professional golfer who plays on the LPGA Tour. With a professional career spanning 29 years to date, Inkster's 31 wins rank her second in wins among all active players on the LPGA ...
,
Ken Brown
*Rules analyst: David Fay
*Course design analyst:
Gil Hanse
Gilbert Hanse (born August 12, 1963) is an American golf course architect. Hanse, along with his business partner Jim Wagner, was selected to design the Rio 2016 Olympic Golf Course, the first Olympic venue to host golf since 1904.
Education
A ...
*Studio Host: Holly Sonders
*Interviews: Shane Bacon
2018 U.S. Open
For the
2018 U.S. Open, Fox announced that they would be splitting their lead commentary booths into two teams.
This was done in an effort to avoid the occasional logjam caused by a three-man booth, which had been Joe Buck with analysts Paul Azinger and Brad Faxon. Therefore, Azinger would now be paired with Buck, and Faxon would be paired alongside Shane Bacon.
*Lead announcers:
Joe Buck
Joseph Francis Buck (born April 25, 1969) is an American sportscaster.
The son of sportscaster Jack Buck, he worked for Fox Sports from its 1994 inception through 2022, including roles as lead play-by-play announcer for the network's Nation ...
,
Paul Azinger
Paul William Azinger (born January 6, 1960) is an American professional golfer and TV golf He won twelve times on the PGA Tour, including one major championship, the 1993 PGA Championship. He spent almost 300 weeks in the top-10 of the Official ...
*Secondary announcers: Shane Bacon,
Brad Faxon
Bradford John Faxon Jr. (born August 1, 1961) is an American professional golfer. He has won eight times on the PGA Tour.
Early years and amateur career
Faxon was born in Oceanport, New Jersey and raised in Barrington, Rhode Island. He attended Fu ...
*On-course reporters:
Curtis Strange
Curtis Northrup Strange (born January 30, 1955) is an American professional golfer and TV color commentator. He is the winner of consecutive U.S. Open titles and a member of the World Golf Hall of Fame and Virginia Sports Hall of Fame. He spent ...
,
Steve Flesch
Stephen J. Flesch (born May 23, 1967) is an American professional golfer who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions. He was a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, and worked briefly as a TV golf analyst for Fox Sports and Golf Channel before joi ...
,
Ken Brown &
Brett Quigley
*Rules analyst: David Fay
*Course design analyst: Gil Hanse
*Studio Host: Holly Sonders
*Interviews:
Shane O'Donoghue
References
External links
*
{{s-end
Fox Sports 1 original programming
Fox Sports original programming
Golf on television