Q: It doesn't cease to amaze me how big disc golf is really becoming. My question: have you heard anything about disc golf being shown on ESPN, NESN, or any other network? If so, how long do you think it will be until we start to see disc golf tournaments on television?

A: This is a great question. There are thousands of us who are waiting for the day, and it will come. I talked with a fellow at FOX Sports about this and his first response was, "Off the record, I'm sorry, but I have no idea what 'disc golf' is." We clearly have a ways to go! (I directed him to some of the MSDGC video clips.)

I then talked with Brian Hoeniger, Executive Director of the PDGA and he stated that this is n ongoing back burner issue. The money just isn't there yet to make it happen, although the PDGA has recently put someone in place to search for this type of corporate sponsorship money! The recent PGA Tour Sunday coverage of the USDGC was created by a traditional and disc golfer who works for the network and came up with the idea. As disc golf grows, these opportunities will become more and more common.

As I see it, there are four primary factors preventing disc golf from being televised:

1. Money. For $400,000, we could buy a one hour time slot on FOX. For $60,000, we could buy a one hour time slot on FOX Sports Net (FSN). When the money is there, the sport will be on TV.

2. Sponsors. Currently our top five events have less than $100k in added money. And only four events add more then $10k to the pro purse. Bearing in mind that television requires a minimum investment of about $100k (inlcuding production costs), the sponsors aren't yet ready to pave the way to television.

3. Spectators. Another avenue that could propel disc golf onto television would be demonstrating that thousands of people want to watch the sport. Right now there are only a handful of events that draw significant crowds. We need to encourage people to go and watch some of the bigger disc golf events in their area.

4. Video Quality. Before disc golf gets on television, it must be presented in a professional, engaging, and understandable manner. The 2005 Worlds DVD and the MSDGC DVDs are starting to develop this, but we're nowhere near where we need to be.

When disc golf is televised, it is critical that it be done right. This will be many folks' first glimpse of disc golf and we must make sure to fire on all cylinders. Personally, I believe that disc golf will be ready for television in three or four years. Keep telling everyone you know about the sport we love, and it may happen sooner.

Sincerely,

Torque Novitski, Marshall Street

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