THE PLAYERS Championship 2025: AI Commentary, Shared-Reality Viewing at COSM, Launch of PGA TOUR World Feed Place Fans at the Center of the Action Stay tuned for more on-site reports from TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL over the weekend By Kristian Hern ndez, Senior Editor Wednesday, March 12, 2025 - 11:27 am
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THE PLAYERS Championship, being played at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL this weekend, is a celebratory moment for the PGA TOUR. Situated close to the course, the PGA TOUR's brand-new 165,000-sq.-ft studios will play a major role in producing the building's first tournament in its backyard. In addition, fans attending the event and watching the broadcasts will notice a ton of innovation, including commentary driven by artificial intelligence on the PGA TOUR App, a shared-reality viewing experience at COSM in Los Angeles and Dallas, live augmented-reality technology seen on NBC Sports' live drone, and more.
THE PLAYERS consistently introduces enhancements that have shaped the overall PGA TOUR experience. These fan-favorite features - including video boards in 2007, electronic leaderboards in 1983, and others -have established THE PLAYERS as a hub for fan engagement across professional sports.
Below are some of the exciting updates fans can look forward to at THE PLAYERS Championship 2025:
TOURCAST Generative AI Commentary For all 30,000 shots this week at THE PLAYERS, fans will experience and understand the tournament with new AI shot commentary in TOURCAST, available through the PGA TOUR app and PGATOUR.COM. From Thursday's opening tee shot to Sunday's winning putt, AI will generate commentary - with data from ShotLink powered by CDW - that gives context to what every shot means for every player. For instance: after a player hits a tee shot, fans will get real-time statistics in TOURCAST that illustrate the importance of a long and accurate drive, giving more meaning to the shot that was just hit while adding context to the significance of the next shot. The TOUR aims to transform fan experiences using AWS generative AI, which allows for deeper storytelling and understanding from ShotLink data in a variety of ways, including this new commentary feature. Every PGA TOUR event will feature AI shot commentary moving forward, starting with the first round of this week's PLAYERS.
AI Course Setup Tool At THE PLAYERS 2025, the PGA TOUR will debut an AI course tool designed to assist the PGA TOUR Rules Committee and enhance the setup of THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass. This tool will allow the Rules Committee to set tee and pin flag locations and generate simulations to see expected scoring results, driving distance and more. The tool will be used each week on TOUR following its public debut at THE PLAYERS 2025, and leverages AWS technology.
NBC Sports Live Drone AR Live Drone AR captures the skill of PGA TOUR players and the stunning beauty of THE PLAYERS Stadium Course at TPC Sawgrass. Fans can experience towering drives in a whole new way, as augmented reality blends live aerial video with real-time analytics. This technology will be featured across all four days of the broadcast on GOLF and NBC Sports.
Cosm The PGA TOUR and Cosm are partnering to bring THE PLAYERS 2025 to Shared Reality at Cosm's experiential venues in Los Angeles at Hollywood Park and Dallas at Grandscape. Fans in these cities can experience the PGA TOUR's flagship event inside Cosm's 87-foot-diameter, 12K LED domes, where the virtual and physical worlds seamlessly blend. This presentation will transport viewers to the 16th, 17th, and 18th holes, capturing the excitement of golf's most iconic three-hole stretch as the world's best players compete on THE PLAYERS Stadium Course, featuring the legendary Island Green. Cosm's broadcast will include unique camera angles on these historic holes, delivering an unparalleled, fully immersive viewing experience.
PGA TOUR World Feed THE PLAYERS Championship 2025 marks the official launch of the PGA TOUR World Feed, which allows the TOUR and its international media partners to provide fans worldwide with more customized coverage and storytelling of the TOUR's international players. Originating just a few hundred yards away from the new PGA TOUR Studios, which opened its doors in January, the PGA TOUR World Feed is produced and curated exclusively for international media partners and their viewers, with up to six dedicated cameras focused on international players at PGA TOUR events across the FedExCup Season. The new, live telecast will be produced for all remaining events on the 2025 PGA TOUR schedule.
ESPN BET on PGA TOUR LIVE The dedicated betting stream returns at THE PLAYERS following its debut at the WM Phoenix Open. Taking viewers inside the world of micro-market betting - wagers that focus on a singular hole or shot outcomes - the feed offers a unique, engaging way to watch a PGA TOUR event. Host Jonathan Coachman and two-time PGA TOUR winner Matt Every will call all the action from the par 5 16th and iconic Island Green 17th hole on Thursday and Friday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. ET, on Saturday from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. and on Championship Sunday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Fans can anticipate additional enhancements to the second rendition of the broadcast, including additional cameras covering featured groups, a new odds ticker and contextual graphics and new talent appearances.
Enhanced Coverage and All Access There are a variety of ways for fans to tune in and engage with THE PLAYERS in 2025, including internationally through the World Feed for the first time. Domestically, PGA TOUR LIVE on ESPN will provide enhanced coverage through four main all-day streams in addition to All Access feeds with no commercial breaks, featuring natural sound
