CBS, ESPN Ink Rights Deal for PGA Championship; Turner Sports Out After 29 Years CBS Sports will serve as lead production entity for all the 72-hole coverage By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor
Wednesday, October 10, 2018 - 1:20 pm
Print This Story
Story Highlights
The PGA of America, CBS, and ESPN have agreed to an 11-year rights agreement for the TV, digital, and OTT rights to the PGA Championship, beginning in 2020. The deal marks the end of the championship's 29-year relationship with Turner Sports, which has carried the golf major on TBS and TNT since '91. CBS Sports will retain rights to Rounds 3 and 4, ESPN will air the opening two rounds, and ESPN will live-stream Featured Hole and Featured Group coverage for all four rounds. CBS Sports will serve as the lead production entity for all the traditional 72-hole coverage for the entire tournament.
Brooks Koepka won the 2018 PGA Championship. (Photo: Montana Pritchard/PGA of America)
The PGA moves to May beginning in 2019, becoming the second major championship on the golf calendar.
CBS, ESPN, and ESPN will combine to deliver more than 175 cumulative hours of live coverage across broadcast, cable, and digital platforms. The PGA of America will retain the rights to PGA.com and produce the web and mobile app experiences.
The move to May is expected heighten the PGA's brand and its initiatives and further elevate the stature of the championship, because the PGA now falls when television viewership is higher and the vast majority of PGA Members are at the frontend of the golf season. The new schedule also enables CBS, ESPN, and the PGA of America to effectively promote important grow-the-game initiatives to a larger and more engaged audience, according to a joint announcement made by the three organizations.
For nearly a half century, CBS Sports has been a vital member of the PGA of America extended family while delivering our major championship to golf fans across the country, PGA CEO Seth Waugh said in the announcement. We are also thrilled to partner with ESPN and connect with sports fans through the reach of the ESPN networks. The PGA is a major that not only typically delivers the strongest field in golf but is synonymous with historic moments that resonate with golf fans everywhere. As we move this iconic championship to May, we are extremely excited that CBS and ESPN will present the highest-quality product with state-of-the-art technology through a broadcast team that shares our mission to grow the sport of golf.
CBS Retains Rounds 3 and 4, Adds One Hour Per Day
CBS Sports, which broadcast the event from 1958 to '64 and has been the home of the PGA Championship since '91, will continue to broadcast the third and final rounds on Saturday and Sunday, increasing coverage by one hour each day. Under the terms of the new deal, CBS also receives expanded highlight and digital rights, including distribution of its coverage across all CBS platforms, including CBSSports.com, CBS All Access, and all mobile applications. Additionally, CBS will offer onsite ancillary programming on CBS Sports Network as well as on its digital and social platforms during Championship Week.
Premium content such as the PGA represents the past, present, and future of CBS, said Joe Ianniello, president/acting CEO, CBS. There is nothing like live sports programming to attract a mass audience and drive our business. We are very pleased to extend our longstanding relationship with the PGA of America and this signature event.
The PGA Championship has been a marquee event on CBS since 1991, said CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus. Retaining these rights was a top priority for us this year, and we are excited to have it continue as a cornerstone of our schedule for 11 more years. Together with ESPN, we look forward to greatly expanding the coverage of this great championship. The move to May will greatly benefit CBS, our viewers, and the golf marketplace.
ESPN, ESPN To Offer Live Action All Four Days
The wide-ranging agreement includes live action on ESPN and ESPN across all four days of the tournament, as well as pre-tournament and other ancillary coverage. Exclusive live coverage of the first and second rounds will appear across ESPN and ESPN . For the third and final rounds, ESPN and ESPN will have multiple hours of live coverage throughout the morning, leading into the CBS telecast later in the day.
ESPN also will air Featured Hole and Featured Group coverage for all four days of the tournament, including during the weekend afternoon windows. Before the first round, ESPN will air coverage from practice rounds, player news conferences, driving-range interviews, and more. Also, an extensive collection of in-progress and post-round highlights will be available on ESPN , ESPN.com, the ESPN App, and other ESPN platforms, and ESPN signature SportsCenter will have a strong presence at the event all week. ESPN last televised the event in 1990.
ESPN is proud to work with the PGA of America and CBS to provide fans with unprecedented coverage of this prestigious event, said ESPN President Jimmy Pitaro. The addition of ESPN provides us the opportunity to go even deeper in showcasing the drama and excitement of the PGA for years to come.
Beyond the Live Window: Strategic Elements, Multiplatform Support
This new partnership between CBS Sports, ESPN, and the PGA of America also includes strategic elements and multiplatform support for key PGA initiatives to help showcase and celebrate the organization, its members, coaches, PGA Jr. League, and the golfers who compete in the championship each year, building a compelling future for this championship and growing the game of golf.
The PGA Jr. League celebrates young athletes, who are the future of this game, while they compete in the PGA Jr. League Championship every Octobe
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
07/10/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
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...
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
Launched alongside new FreqSoft installer
Designed to bridge the gap between hardware and software, Freqport's FreqInOut FO1 unit provides a simple way ...
15/07/2026
Save up to 55% on software until 23 July 2026
Expressive E have just launched their Summer Offer sale, with discounts of up to 55% now applied across their ...
15/07/2026
Real-time stem-separation tool updated
zplane have recently released a new and improved version of their real-time stem-separation plug-in which they say ma...
15/07/2026
A new benchmark in bass enhancement
Described as a new benchmark in bass enhancement , Baby Audio's latest release has been designed to augment the lo...
15/07/2026
DMC Production's AR 1 and AR 2 units reverse the conventional OB workflow, keeping all production-critical processing at the venue while operators work remo...
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 | ...
15/07/2026
Brazilian media organization builds nationwide CDN with Broadpeak's high-performance software for low-latency streaming and new content distribution service...
15/07/2026
DHD announces a new utility designed to increase the efficiency of its audio mixing systems during initial installation and subsequent configuration.
Anyone w...
15/07/2026
BCNEXXT Brings Next-Generation Vipe to IBC2026, Breaking the 1:1 Channel-to-Server Ratio New innovations liberate broadcasters from legacy playout infrastructur...
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
General-purpose robots and autonomous machines are moving from research labs to ...
15/07/2026
Wednesday 15 July 2026
Screeners and press pack now available: Gomorrah: The Or...
15/07/2026
Trinity's Treasures features Ruth Negga, Eleanor McEvoy, and David Norris, a...
15/07/2026
Join geographer Dr Susan Hegarty, Engineer Tim Joyce and Architect Orla Murphy a...
15/07/2026
Home to leading manufacturers, robotics pioneers, infrastructure builders and iconic gaming companies, of course, Japan is one of the world's centers of AI ...
14/07/2026
South end zone videoboard, cloud-based control system will be ready for 2026 football season...
14/07/2026
Redesigned website, enhanced mobile app unify content, ticketing, and personalized fan engagement...
14/07/2026
Agreement spans sponsorship sales, digital monetization, radio production, and new practice facility naming rights...
14/07/2026
Independent league adds 14 regional sports network affiliates, growing distribut...
14/07/2026
New strategy aims to unify competitions, content, fan engagement, and commercial...
14/07/2026
ESPN and Disney+ become exclusive home of PFL events in key international MMA market...
14/07/2026
Gill will oversee engineering, technology, and sports operations across the company's 64 local television stations...
14/07/2026
Submitted by North American Broadcasters Association (NABA)
As broadcasters con...
CBS, ESPN Ink Rights Deal for PGA Championship; Turner Sports Out After 29 Years CBS Sports will serve as lead production entity for all the 72-hole coverage By Jason Dachman, Chief Editor 
