13-time Emmy award-winner Jimmy Roberts uncovers the game’s most compelling stories; Premiere episode takes viewers from Attica State Prison to the King’s Warehouse in Latrobe, Pa.; LPGA star Christina Kim opens up about her battle with depression in first on-camera interview; Monthly series premieres Tuesday, March 12 at 10:30 p.m. ET
ORLANDO, Fla., (March 5, 2013) – Golf has an abundance of compelling, real-life stories waiting to be told about the game and the characters that inhabit it. Golf Channel’s new original series, In Play with Jimmy Roberts, premiering Tuesday, March 12 at 10:30 p.m. ET and returning monthly, will scour the globe to uncover the most compelling stories in golf.
Host and managing editor Jimmy Roberts, a 13-time Emmy Award-winner at ESPN and NBC Sports, has drawn critical acclaim for telling some of sports’ greatest stories during his distinguished career, which includes covering 14 Olympics for multiple networks. In Play will chronicle the stories about celebrities to everyday people who are all unified by golf.
Golf Channel contributors working on stories for In Play with Jimmy Roberts include Damon Hack, who covered golf for The New York Times and Sports Illustrated, Golf Channel’s veteran on-air hosts Rich Lerner and Kelly Tilghman, and Golf World senior writer Tim Rosaforte, among others.
Scheduled features in the March 12 premiere episode include:
Golf Vistas From Behind Bars – Sentenced to prison for a murder he claims he did not commit, Valentino Dixon has spent the past 21 years in Attica State Prison in Upstate New York. Eligible for parole in 2030, Dixon has never played a round of golf or even picked up a golf club. However, he passes the time in his cell drawing famous golf holes from around the world. Interviews with Dixon, Charlotte Ross, his childhood art teacher and Lamar Scott, who also is serving a life sentence but claims he committed the crime Dixon was convicted for more than two decades ago, are featured.
The King’s Warehouse – Latrobe, Pa., is an iconic location in American golf as the home of the sport’s most famous player, Arnold Palmer. In a massive warehouse is a treasure trove of memorabilia that Palmer has collected over the years. Rich Lerner joins The King for a rare tour.
Divots of Depression: Christina Kim – With her robust, upbeat persona, LPGA professional Christina Kim seems an unlikely victim of depression. Known for her incandescent smile and her full-throttle cheering at the Solheim Cup, Kim found herself in that unlikely position in 2011, wrestling with depression and contemplating suicide. Damon Hack sits down Kim for her first on-camera interview about her battle with depression.
“If you tell stories in this business, there are three things you hope for: resources, time and something compelling to talk about,” said Roberts. “With In Play, we are so fortunate to have the first two via Golf Channel, and that will provide us with the exciting challenge each month to search for the third. Fortunately, the depth of content related to the game of golf is rich with great stories from all corners of the globe and all levels of the sport.”
“At each Olympics for decades, viewers have laughed, cried and been inspired by stories told by Jimmy Roberts. In Play will continue in the rich NBC Sports tradition of storytelling, by now turning the lens on compelling stories related to golf,” said Mike McCarley, President of Golf Channel.
About Golf Channel
As the fastest-growing network on television, Golf Channel is a multimedia, golf entertainment and services company based in Orlando, Fla. The Golf Channel cable network, co-founded by Arnold Palmer in 1995 and part of the NBC Sports Group, is available in more than 120 million homes worldwide through cable, satellite and wireless companies. As part of the NBC Sports Group, professional golf coverage on NBC is branded “Golf Channel on NBC,” further extending the Golf Channel brand to NBC’s broadcast audiences. Exclusive partnerships with the world’s top tours allow Golf Channel to feature more live golf coverage than all other networks combined, added to a programming schedule distinguished by golf’s best news, instruction and original programming. Golf Channel’s digital platform of businesses is led by www.GolfChannel.com, a leading golf destination on the Internet, delivering unmatched coverage of the world of golf, as well as services that help the recreational player with how to play, what to play and where to play golf.
Contact:
Jeremy Friedman
Golf Channel
t: 407-355-4058
e: jfriedman@golfchannel.com