In a return to Royal Birkdale, the team enjoys partnering with ETP and Gravity Media on a production marked by uncharacteristically hot weather
The NBC Sports golf-production team has a team of 140 onsite for the 154th Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, about an hour's drive north of Manchester. For Allison McAllister, VP, golf operations, NBC Sports, and the team, returning to an Open site for a second time has meant smooth sailing, especially amidst sunny skies and weather conditions atypical of an Open Championship.
We partner with the R&A and European Tour Productions [ETP] to plan coverage, and that starts a good year ahead of the Open, she says. We have an incredible team that works together seamlessly. Through strong planning and clear communication, we make sure every group and department is supported and that every detail is taken care of.
Experience working on this event at this course makes much of it rinse-and-repeat, although NBC's coverage has evolved in 10 years. Also, besides the 140 people onsite, NBC has a team in Stamford, CT, putting together the All-Access coverage and a Marquee Group production team working at IMG in Stockley Park, UK, bringing the total headcount to nearly 160.
The core on-course bells and whistles are spearheaded primarily by ETP and the Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews. Notes McAllister, Those depend on what ETP and the R&A are looking to showcase.
From left: NBC Sports' Tavi Wright, Allison McAllister, Craig Bernstein, Jason Abrams, Blaise Fernandez, and Krystyna Kosciuszko at the 154th Open Championship at Royal BirkdaleThe collaboration with the R&A, ETP, and Gravity Media is the key to great coverage, says Craig Bernstein, VP, remote technical operations, NBC Sports. Our collaboration with them on operations and engineering is the linchpin of what makes this event a success. And, from our side this is [NBC Sports Director, Remote Technical Operations] Jason Abrams's first time leading the tournament, and it has been a successful transition.
Working with Gravity Media Director, Golf Operations, Hamish Greig and his team and the ETP, Abrams says, has been great and began in March during the PLAYERS Championship. [Grieg] is one of the best partners you could ever imagine. He comes ready with notes and plans, and you just become part of the planning. It's much more than a mobile-based plan like we typically do: they build up an IBC.
NBC is deploying 36 unilateral cameras: 22 unilateral hard cameras, four handheld cameras, a few beauty cameras, and cameras for post-match interviews. We have access to all the ETP world feeds as splits, Abrams adds. And we're even accessing a few feeds from Sky Sports that they are feeding to ETP. We used those this morning and last night.
He has been impressed by the steps the ETP has taken for on-course coverage: bunker cams, for example, are important on a course like Royal Birkdale. The cameras are installed with conduits, and every bunker here has a great wall in front of it, so it's a totally different game versus domestic golf.
And then, he continues there are the differences in camera setups with knolls and hills and how they pre-plan so the camera guys can just fall into place. It's a different model of production, but Hamish and Greg Livermore [director, technical solutions, Gravity Media] and their team have been awesome to work with.
The big story for the past few weeks in the UK and Europe has been the higher temperatures, and this year's Open Championship does feel much more akin to a summer tournament in the U.S. than to the typical Open Championship, with its wind, rain, and temperatures barely cracking 70 - if fans and the crew are lucky. This year, temperatures have been closer to 80 although they are forecast to cool off a bit as the tournament progresses.
We partner closely with [ETP Production Executive] Molly Reed to make sure we're sharing the latest heat-related guidance with our team, says McAllister. It's the little things that make a big difference: like ensuring everyone has what they need, whether that's sunshade umbrellas for the camera crew or other essentials to stay safe and comfortable.
North America Stories
16/07/2026
This recent graduate and Georgia native has turned an early fascination with live production into a growing passion for camera work
In the live-sports-video in...
16/07/2026
TNDV is marking the first anniversary of Aspiration 35, a mobile production truck built around ARRI Alexa 35 Live camera systems. Over its first year, the truck...
16/07/2026
ATSC has completed a major revision to its A/85 Recommended Practice: Techniques...
16/07/2026
FloSports has announced an exclusive global media partnership with CrossFit for the 2026 CrossFit Games, presented by Air National Guard, beginning July 21 in S...
16/07/2026
Sennheiser has released firmware version 1.4 for its Spectera wireless system and announced the Spectera Command Button (Cat. No. 701014). The update adds comma...
16/07/2026
ESPN and the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) have announced a multi-year...
16/07/2026
Audio-Technica has announced the 20 Series Control Application, a Stream Deck plug-in for compatible Audio-Technica USB microphones. The application is compatib...
16/07/2026
The fifteenth season of The Voice - La plus belle voix on TF1 used four Solid St...
16/07/2026
Gray Media and the Atlanta Hawks have announced a broadcast partnership that wil...
16/07/2026
Season 3 of Netflix's docuseries, which dropped this week, follows Jayden Da...
16/07/2026
The Texas Rangers and Rangers Sports Network presented by Progressive (RSN) have announced BZZR as the new direct-to-consumer distributor for Rangers game broad...
16/07/2026
With England's FIFA World Cup 2026 team getting ready to fly home after losi...
16/07/2026
In a return to Royal Birkdale, the team enjoys partnering with ETP and Gravity M...
16/07/2026
Along with a new studio at Ball Arena, the Colorado-based RSN is working with XR...
16/07/2026
Austria was back at the World Cup for the first time in 28 years, and the team d...
16/07/2026
With 42 RF cameras and high-power radio mics deployed, the spectrum environment ...
16/07/2026
June brought stabilization to the television market. Poles spent an average of 3 hours and 36 minutes a day in front of their TV screens exactly the same as i...
16/07/2026
Glensound returns to IBC with a major new addition to its intelligent loudspeaker range, the Greater Divine Supernal studio monitor, alongside recent developmen...
16/07/2026
33 leading exhibitors are taking part in the GREAT Britain and Northern Ireland Pavilions and linked locations across IBC2026 (Amsterdam RAI, 11 14 September)...
16/07/2026
Hitomi Broadcast will introduce Spectra, a new HDR colour verification solution measured in picture, not using VPID, at IBC2026 (Hall 10, Stand A40). Expanding ...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
16/07/2026
Zixi, a leader in live video delivery and workflow orchestration, and Comcast Technology Solutions (CTS) today announced a strategic new integration to deliver ...
16/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Cameras Capture Immersive Flight for New Cirrus App
Brie Clayton July 15, 2026
0 Comments
Leader in Personal Aviation taps URSA Cin...
16/07/2026
XenData Announces LTO Archive Appliances with both File and S3 Object Storage In...
16/07/2026
Onimusha: Way of the Sword is coming to GeForce NOW at launch, with the playable...
15/07/2026
The 2026 FIFA World Cup is a big deal for DAZN, which has distribution rights in three markets: Italy, Spain, and Japan. Each requires a different editorial app...
15/07/2026
As sports-media organizations manage rapidly growing content libraries and incre...
15/07/2026
HBS director of digital Johannes Franken talks SVG Europe through the operation built to serve FIFA World Cup 2026 rights holders remotely from Stratford, east ...
15/07/2026
IBC has unveiled the conference program for IBC2026, with this year's event ...
15/07/2026
Software-defined wideband RF platform supports 96-kHz monitoring, streamlined fr...
15/07/2026
New AI-powered module enables broadcasters and content owners to extract dialogu...
15/07/2026
Weeklong gathering at EBU headquarters will test new IPMX capabilities and expand certified product ecosystem...
15/07/2026
Force Tech has announced the appointment of Bryan Adams, CTS, as Vice President of Integration. Adams will oversee AV and broadcast integration project delivery...
15/07/2026
USA Sports has announced an exclusive English-language agreement with the Bundes...
15/07/2026
ITV Sport's FIFA World Cup 2026 coverage has been produced from one of the m...
15/07/2026
Program will provide professional camera kits, training, and technical support to participating local newsrooms...
15/07/2026
San Francisco church becomes first U.S. deployment of the 2 M/E production switcher...
15/07/2026
Former ESPN and NFL Network executive to advise startup league on media, distribution, technology, and fan engagement...
15/07/2026
The Houston-based RSN is the live-game home of the Astros and Rockets...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
15/07/2026
GigaCloud, a leading Ukrainian cloud service provider, and Cubbit, the first geo-distributed cloud storage enabler, today announced a new Business Alliance Part...
15/07/2026
SMPTE, the global society for media professionals, technologists, and engineers, has announced the launch of the SMPTE 110th Anniversary Campaign, a fundraising...
15/07/2026
Studio Technologies, a leading manufacturer of high-quality audio, video, and fiber-optic solutions, unveils the new StudioComm Model 762 Stereo Level Control, ...
15/07/2026
COW Jobs: Producer, Virtual Events - Hybrid, Full Time, Salaried
Brie Clayton July 15, 2026
0 Comments
Producer, Virtual Events (Hybrid | Full-time | ...
In a return to Royal Birkdale, the team enjoys partnering with ETP and Gravity Media on a production marked by uncharacteristically hot weather
