Masters live on Sky
Augusta National Golf Club has announced that Sky Sports will join the BBC as host of live UK broadcasts of the Masters.
Augusta National Golf Club has announced that Sky Sports will join the BBC as the host of live broadcasts of the Masters in the United Kingdom from 2011.
Sky Sports will be showing coverage of all four days of 2011’s first Major at the Augusta National, exclusively live in HD and 3D – as well as Wednesday’s Par 3 Contest.
Billy Payne, Chairman of Augusta National Golf Club and the Masters Tournament, on Tuesday confirmed the addition to the Tournament’s television schedule and host broadcasters here in the UK.
Beginning at the 2011 Masters, scheduled to take place the week of April 4-10, there will be an extra hour of live coverage on Thursday and Friday.
“Since our first telecast of the Masters in 1956, we have carefully maintained a tradition of high-quality programming within an appropriate broadcast window,” said Payne.
“Now, with the proper infrastructure and resources in place, we are confident the additional coverage will meet the high standards of the millions of golf fans who enjoy viewing the Masters each April.”
Sky Sports will televise Wednesday’s Par 3 Contest and the four Tournament rounds Thursday to Sunday, live.
Sky Sports also brings with it the ability to distribute the first live 3D Masters coverage to UK viewers with 3D televisions.
“We consider ourselves fortunate to have two committed television partners who are able to reach both new and established audiences throughout the United Kingdom,” Payne said.
“This agreement was successful in both preserving a long-term partnership and adding a new dimension to our coverage in the U.K.”
The Masters has been broadcast by CBS every year since 1956 and early round coverage has been televised by ESPN since 2008.
In 1993, the Masters introduced its first HD production and became the first golf tournament presented live in HD on network television in 2000.
In 2010, the Masters became the first major sporting event in the United States to be produced and delivered in 3D to televisions and computers in homes throughout North America.
Sky Sports is the only place to see all four days live and in HD, while Sky Sports News will be reporting live from Augusta throughout the week.
Following the announcement from the Augusta National Golf Club, Sky Sports Managing Director Barney Francis said: “Sky Sports is now the only place to see all four days of the Masters, live.
“In the UK & Ireland, next year’s Masters will be the first shown live on Sky Sports, the first with the par-3 contest scheduled live on TV and the first of golf’s Majors to be shown in 3D in the UK.
“3D coverage of the Masters will give a unique view of the Masters and really capture the contours of the stunning Augusta National course.
“We are also delighted that coverage from the host broadcasters at Augusta National will start one hour earlier than ever before.”
“Sky Sports has enjoyed a great partnership with golf for nearly two decades. We follow a hundred different tournaments each year, from five different continents, and are excited that The Masters is now at the heart of this calendar.”
It will also be available on Sky Player and via Sky Mobile TV to Sky Sports subscribers.
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