DirecTV to Offer PGA Tournament Coverage

Direct TV is following up on their groundbreaking golf coverage with another gem, this time with expanded PGA Tournament coverage starting Thursday, August 7^th. Earlier this year, Direct TV presented expanded Masters coverage with their Masters Mix.

This weekend, DirecTV will offer expanded PGA Championship coverage with another Mix channel. Free to all subscribers, it won’t be found on Comcast, Time Warner Cable, or on DISH Network.

Direct TV will be teaming up with TNT and CBS, who will be providing the main coverage for this year’s PGA Tournament. The 90^th annual event will be held in Michigan this year, from the Oakland Hills Country Club. While Tiger Woods will not be participating, as he recovers from knee surgery, all of the other major players will be competing, including Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh.

The coverage will once again feature a “Mix Channel” on DirecTV channel 701. The PGA Mix channel will feature a scoreboard on the left side of the screen, and four different views on the channel. Viewers can then jump to any of the four different tournament feeds:

1.) Live coverage of the tournament, view currently on TNT or CBS.

2.) Featured Group – This channel will follow the progress of a specific group of players as they play the course.

3.) Featured Holes – Similar to the Masters Mix coverage of Amen Corner, this channel will focus on 2 specific par 3’s on the Oakland Hills Southern Course. Viewers will be able to track movement as players try to move up the leader board on these important holes.

4.) Players in Depth – A highlights and interview channel, probably similar to what the Golf channel offers on their highlight shows. Live coverage of press conferences, the latest stats and scores, and other pertinent information about the PGA Tournament will be found on this channel.

All of the expanded coverage will be available in HD for Direct TV subscribers with HD access. These additional channels will be available in addition to the live network coverage for all four days of the PGA. Scheduled coverage will be Thursday and Friday on TNT from 1-7 P.M. ET. That will be followed up on Saturday and Sunday with coverage on TNT from 11 A.M. - 2 p.m. ET, then on CBS from 2-7 P.M. Eastern Time.

Eric Shanks, the executive vice president of DirecTV Entertainment on the coverage:

“DIRECTV Interactive is to viewers what a great caddie is to the touring pro. We’re their eyes and ears and we make sure they have all the information and the tools they need to get the most out of the game. Major championships like the PGA and US OPEN golf and US OPEN tennis provide an incredible stage to showcase our HD and interactive technology and the new, exciting dimension they bring to the televised sports viewing experience. This is what content leadership is all about and what our customers have come to expect as we continue to explore innovative ways to engage the viewer.”

The PGA Tournament Interactive service is another example of Direct TV’s interactive sports services which also include the NFL Sunday Ticket and the NASCAR HotPass.