Sky Loses Top Flight Golf Tour

Sky’s loss of PGA golf coverage from next year is a blow for golf fans who look set to have to subscribe to two different services for their fix: Sky’s sports channels for most of the major tournaments in HD and a yet-to-be disclosed online service for the US PGA, European PGA and Asian Tours.

Stuff reports the PGA rights owners wish to trial a direct-to-customer approach to the New Zealand market.

“We are very disappointed to have missed out on the rights and will be working hard to try and secure them once again when they next become available,” Sky said in a statement.

Ironically, Sky has lost the rights just when Kiwi golfers Danny Lee, Tim Wilkinson and Steven Alker have qualified for next year’s US PGA Tour – a historic event that could have boosted viewership of next year’s tour.

Here’s what Sky’s retained in 2015:

• The US Masters from Augusta
• The US Open Championship
• The US Open Women’s Championship
• The Open Championship (British Open)
• The Women’s Open Championship
• Senior’s Open
• World Golf Championship Events
• OneAsia Tour
• Australian PGA
• Australian Open
• Australian Masters
• Australian Ladies Masters
• Asian Amateur Championship

It will continue to screen such Golf Channel content as:

• Golf Central – Daily
• Live From around Major events
• The Hanney Project
• Feherty
• Big Break
• Golf Fix
• Titleist Performance Institute
• Playing Lessons
• Chasing the Dream

Between now and Christmas, Sky will provide live and exclusive coverage of:

• The Ryder Cup (September 25 – 28)
• LPGA of Malaysian Open (October 9 – 12)
• LPGA Hanna Bank Championship (October 17 – 19)
• Korean Open – Men’s (October 23 – 26)
• Asian Amateur Championships (October 23 – 26)
• LPGA Blue Bay   (October 23 – 26)
• LPGA Taiwan Championship (October 30 – November 2)
• LPGA Lorena Ochoa Invitational  (November 13 – 16)
• Australian Masters  (November 20 – 23)
• LPGA Tour Championship (November 20 – 23)
• Australian Open (November 27 – 30)
• Dongfeng Nissan Cup – Men’s  (December 5 – 7)
• Australian PGA  (December 11 – 14).