7 Of 8 USGA Events Going Ad-Free Thanks To Rolex Deal

Golfweek's Martin Kaufmann reports on a new USGA sponsorship with Rolex that means no commercial interruptions during seven of the eight USGA championships. The setup will happen at events airing on Fox Sports or FS1.

The "USGA Championship Season On Fox Presented By Rolex" does have a certain ring to it, actually, more like a tongue-tying migraine-inducing, announcers-worst-nightmare-ring.

“You will see Rolex’s brand and ideally you’ll see sponsored features from other corporate partners and things of that nature,” Hirshland said. “What you will not see is any traditional 30-second-style commercial advertising inventory.”

The U.S. Open will be the only USGA championship with traditional advertising, which Hirshland said will be “consistent with what you would have seen in past years.” Rolex, however, will present the final hour of the Open with no commercial interruption.

“For the viewer, this is a great thing,” Mark Loomis, executive producer of Fox’s live golf coverage, said of the initiative.

It's hard to fathom Fox would give up the advertising revenue if there were plenty of ad buyers, but whether they make or lose money matters not to viewers. Unless, of course this new structure leads to cut backs in production values.