NBC SPORTS GROUP TO SHOWCASE THE TOP PLAYERS IN WOMEN’S GOLF WITH LIVE COVERAGE OF THE EVIAN CHAMPIONSHIP AND THE UL INTERNATIONAL CROWN

 

Golf Channel and NBC to Air Nearly 25 Hours of Evian Championship Coverage Thursday-Sunday; NBC to Highlight Evian Championship in 90-Minute Special Sunday at 2:30 p.m. ET

 

Thirty-Two Players Representing Eight Countries to Convene Upon South Korea to Determine Best Women’s Golf Nation at UL International Crown Biennial Match Play Competition, Oct. 3-6, Live in Primetime on Golf Channel

 

ORLANDO, Fla. (Sept. 11, 2018) – Golf Channel and NBC will shine a spotlight on the world’s top female professional golfers over the next month, beginning this week with the LPGA Tour’s fifth and final major of 2018, the Evian Championship. Three weeks later, 32 players representing eight countries will head to South Korea to compete in the UL International Crown – a global biennial match-play competition airing live in primetime Wednesday-Saturday, Oct. 3-6.

“NBC Sports Group’s upcoming four-week stretch showcases the world’s top professionals competing in some of the most exciting events in golf, from The Evian Championship this week, the conclusion of the PGA TOUR’s FedExCup Playoffs next week, and back-to-back international match-play events with the Ryder Cup and UL International Crown,” said Molly Solomon, Golf Channel executive producer. “With France and South Korea as the backdrops, the LPGA Tour’s global reach will take center stage as these women strive to win golf’s final major championship of the year, and then are provided the ultimate opportunity of representing their country.”

EVIAN CHAMPIONSHIP: Golf Channel and NBC will combine for nearly 25 hours of tournament coverage of the Evian Championship Thursday-Sunday, the most-number of hours ever for this major championship. Nine of the top-10 in the Rolex Women’s Rankings are scheduled to compete, headlined by No. 1 Sung Hyun Park, No. 5 and top-ranked American Lexi Thompson, and defending champion Anna Nordqvist. Live coverage of all four rounds of the Evian Championship will air on Golf Channel Thursday-Sunday.

Thursday and Friday will feature the morning and afternoon waves in two, three-hour telecast windows. Golf Channel also will air a total of 11 hours of coverage Saturday and Sunday through the tournament’s conclusion. NBC will air a special 90-minute show recapping Sunday’s final round at 2:30 p.m. ET.

UL INTERNATIONAL CROWN: The UL International Crown, which made its debut in 2014 with Spain claiming the inaugural Crown, returns Oct. 3-6 for the third staging of the competition, taking place at Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea in Incheon, South Korea. The eight countries entered are: Australia, Chinese Taipei, England, Japan, Republic of Korea, Sweden, Thailand and the United States. Four players will represent each country in the competition, who qualified based on the Rolex Women’s Rankings at the conclusion of the 2018 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship. The eight countries are split into two pools and will compete in three days of four-ball matches with the top two countries from each pool and one wild card country advancing to a final day of singles matches. Golf Channel will dedicate 25 hours of live, primetime coverage of the matches, from the first tee-shot to the final putt, Wednesday-Saturday, Oct. 3-6.

BROADCAST TEAMS: Grant Boone and Tom Abbott will rotate play-by-play duties the first two days at the Evian Championship. Hall-of-Famer Judy Rankin will join Boone in the broadcast booth, and major champion Karen Stupples will join Abbott. Richard Kaufman will report from an on-course tower, and Jerry Foltz and Henni Zuel will walk inside the ropes as course reporters.

For the UL International Crown, Abbott and Stupples will anchor coverage from the broadcast booth. They will be joined by Kay Cockerill and Jerry Foltz reporting from the course. Kate Burton, Alison Whitaker and Dom Boulet also will contribute to Golf Channel’s tournament coverage.

SOCIAL MEDIA AND DIGITAL COVERAGE: The Evian Championship and UL International Crown will be streamed live on Golf Channel Digital, and the Golf Channel app.

Golf Channel Digital also will have comprehensive editorial coverage of the Evian Championship and UL International Crown with columns and daily blogs, led by GolfChannel.com senior writer Randall Mell. Golf Channel’s social media platforms – Twitter, Facebook and Instagram – also will provide expanded social media coverage. Social media host Alexandra O’Laughlin will be contributing on-site throughout the week in South Korea for the UL International Crown. News and tournament action can be accessed at any time on any mobile device and online via Golf Channel Digital. Fans also can stream NBC Sports’ coverage of live golf via NBC Sports Digital and the NBC Sports App.

Evian Championship Airtimes (all times Eastern)

Thursday, Sept. 13	First Round	5-8 a.m. / 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 14	Second Round	5-8 a.m. / 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sept. 15	Third Round	6-11:30 a.m.
Sunday, Sept. 16	Final Round (Golf Channel)	4:30-10 a.m.
	Final Round Special (NBC)	2:30-4 p.m.

UL International Crown Airtimes (all times Eastern)

Wednesday, Oct. 3	Day 1 – Four-ball Matches	8 p.m.-3 a.m.
Thursday, Oct. 4	Day 2 – Four-ball Matches	9 p.m.-3 a.m.
Friday, Oct. 5	Day 3 – Four-ball Matches	9 p.m.-3 a.m.
Saturday, Oct. 6	Day 4 – Singles Matches	9 p.m.-3 a.m.

 

-NBC Sports Group-

 

Media Contact:

Jeremy Friedman
Golf Channel Communications
407-355-4058
Jeremy.Friedman@golfchannel.com