The CW to Add Golf (?!) as New Prez Attempts to ‘Reengineer the Network’
Is this a taste of what the new, Nexstar-owned CW has to offer?
The network has partnered with Saudi-backed LIV Golf to become LIV’s U.S. broadcast television and streaming home, as part of a multi-year agreement announced Thursday. As part of the deal, The CW will air 14 global LIV Golf League live events in 2023; weekend tourneys will air Saturdays and Sundays on The CW, and Fridays on The CW app.
“Our new partnership between The CW and LIV Golf will deliver a whole new audience and add to the growing worldwide excitement for the league. With CW’s broadcasts and streams, more fans across the country and around the globe can partake in the LIV Golf energy and view its innovative competition that has reimagined the sport for players, fans and the game of golf,” CW president Dennis Miller said in a statement. “For The CW, our partnership with LIV Golf marks a significant milestone in our goal to reengineer the network with quality, diversified programming for our viewers, advertisers and CW affiliates. This also marks the first time in The CW’s 17-year history that the network is the exclusive broadcast home for live mainstream sports.”
Added LIV Golf commissioner and CEO and Greg Norman: “This is a momentous day for LIV Golf as this partnership is about more than just media rights. The CW’s nationwide reach as America’s fifth broadcast network, will provide accessibility for our fans and maximum exposure for our athletes and partners. The CW recognizes the enormous interest in and potential of our league and with their support, more fans will experience the energy and innovative competition that LIV Golf is using to reinvigorate the sport. The CW is a world-class media partner, and we are honored to be joining forces to further bring LIV Golf to life as they stake their claim in professional sports.”
Participating golfers include Dustin Johnson, Cam Smith, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau and Sergio Garcia. The on-air announce team will consist of Arlo White leading play-by-play, alongside analysts David Feherty and Jerry Foltz in the booth, and Dom Boulet, Su-Ann Heng and Troy Mullins providing coverage on the course and in-feature segments.
What follows is the current 2023 LIV Golf League schedule; the full 14-tournament schedule for 2023 will be announced at a later date.
February 24-26
Mayakoba’s El Camaleón (Mexico)
March 17-19
The Gallery Golf Club (Tucson, Arizona)
April 21-23
The Grange Golf Club (Adelaide, Australia)
April 28-30
The Serapong at Sentosa Golf Club (Singapore)
May 12-14
Cedar Ridge Country Club (Tulsa, Oklahoma)
June 30-July 2
Real Club Valderrama (Spain)
August 4-6
The Greenbrier (White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia)
Are they trying to help this network or kill it because things like this will send original CW viewers to different channels.
In droves…..
and it will make them about 100x more money then any original CW show ever will
The new owners of the CW reportedly determined that the predominant viewers of the network were *not* younger people (despite the network attempting to narrow-market to them). Instead, it was predominantly older adults – the average viewer’s age was 58. Golf will probably fit in quite well for that demographic.
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Plus, I’m understanding that this appeals to the new CW in a different way: it is CHEAP. This is, I believe, a “time buy” where the CW sells off the time slots (almost like an infomercial) then LIV Golf is responsible for everything else – production, ad sales, etc.
This may be true, but it will definitely cause The CW to shift in an entirely new direction in two years, in that I guarantee it’ll start to become a live sports channel and ANY scripted show will either be gone by 2024/2025, or the very few they keep will change to satisfy an older demographic.
The CW as it’s been up until now will be merely a memory in two years. If this is their plan, to completely shift to an older demographic, then they will certainly succeed in this move. If it saves their network, cool, but it’s not going to be a major network as a result. It’ll become a forgettable network to many or become That Knockoff Sports Channel.
Yup. Obviously they want to transition. Three shows next year, and then they will likely be cancelled and they will concentrate on live programming or old programming, reruns. CW will be gone. Very cheap.
LIV GOLF always said they wanted to gear towards the young. But the new direction of CW wants to gear to the older. Very clashing.
Unfortunately they’re going to end up like USA and TBS. Both were once great networks that were completely destroyed. I am in my 50’s and have loved the CW programming. I hate golf. For me it’s about as exciting as watching paint dry.
So true.
Also, it’s gross to see all these super rich golfers partner with Saudi Arabia, who happily arrests and tortures women for advocating for their rights and also murdered an American journalist. But hey, making $30M a year just isn’t enough…
It’s sucks. But CW gets more out of the deal initially. They don’t have to expend any capital to show the golf because LIV GOLF will do all the work. They don’t have to share that much money. They just get the blood money for taking the Saudi money. When it’s proven LIV is owned by the Crown Prince.
Completely agree!
Yet look at what the European pga tour is now known as the dp tour in as Dubai ports yet pga got s free pass
Also, the avid sports/golf fans (depending if they’re JUST sticking with golf or not) will pay for a premium sports channel anyway. Sure, there will be many who flock to The CW for golf, but if the network thinks it’s going to be a massive success, it won’t be. They’re not going to suddenly get an influx of new viewers while keeping their old viewers. They may be cutting their costs for cheaper programming, but I have a hard time seeing them making that up in their finances outside of the golf world. Their partners may pay enough to help keep the network afloat but they’re losing more than they realize.
In ten years time, I actually see The CW going bankrupt.
Your are right when you say about USA & TBS, also TNT. Soon no one will have to worry because there will not be any broadcasting of entertainment or streaming. Our govt will see to that.
“Our government” has nothing to do with it, but thanks for playing…
What really makes no sense is that if their demographic skewers to older viewers already then why make such drastic changes. Seems completely off base. I see the president and programming director looking for work very soon
That baffles me too. This is really the first sign of what they want to air-nobody really knows what they have in mind (there’s been a lot of guessing but nobody really knows) but you don’t get a more niche audience than golf. It attracts a much smaller audience than the stuff the CW already has. I don’t get this at all.
They plan on continuing to air scripted fair but it will be very budget friendly. No well known IPs or genre shows. Co productions, multi cam sitcoms and procedurals.
This is going to repeal the younger viewers of their dramas and I doubt the golf crowd is going to see a promo for All American or Riverdale and think: I should check that out.
There won’t be Riverdale or AA anymore. They’re changing the whole focus of the network.
AA was renewed for another season.
It isn’t cheap. LIke other networks that air live sports events the network pays for the rights to air the event/sport. They are hoping for large ratings and ad revenue.
I don’t understand why they would expect large ratings from golf. It’s never drawn large ratings before…
I get that they realized their viewers were older than expected…. What I don’t get is, why wouldn’t they make more of the type of show that was obviously appealing to them, instead of what they think people in this age demo should watch? Golf is definitely available elsewhere! I guess the cost theory makes the most sense.
I hate the CW show-cancel culture as much as anyone, but … how does daytime golf on weekend days alienate long-time primetime CW viewers? CW had no daytime content before this deal.
Here’s how I see it: The CW is very much in a transition period still. This is only the beginnings of the changes they’ll make with the network. It’s not going to just stop with weekend golf. They’re testing the waters with it because the network wants to shift the network in a new direction. On the surface, weekend golf tournaments isn’t alarming; it’s beneath the surface and what it seems the network is likely to do that it becomes alarming. Which, ok, you could make the argument that we DON’T know where they’re heading and to give them time. But their moves, thus far, have given people no hope in believing that they’re moving in the right direction for current viewers.
The president even says above that they’re looking to re-engineer the network. This is merely step one. They’ve also already stated that they plan to renew no more than five shows, but it’s unclear if they really do plan to keep said shows long-term or if it’s just to help with the transition. We also have zero clue what kind of scripted shows they plan to create themselves, if they even do, so that’ll be another clue to the longevity of the network.
It’s also funny that the president truly believes that The CW will remain a Big Five network. The reason WHY The CW was considered part of the Big Five is due to their scripted series. Their reality shows and imported shows didn’t keep them in people’s minds.
Partnering with LIV golf IMHO is the same as supporting Russia during the Ukrainian invasion. It’s Saudi blood money.
Yes. I’m unhappy that they cancelled so many shows I like, but partnering with them actively repels me. And I’m in my late 60’s, so probably their new target audience.
The new CW owners don’t care about existing viewers. They plan to cancel most of the CW’s scripted programming and focus on cheap reality TV and cheap Canadian imports.
The old owners of the CW made most of their money through licensing deals with Netflix; so, ratings didn’t matter that much. Shows like All-American and the Flash did extremely well on Netflix. But the old owners decided to let their contracts expire w/ Netflix, take their shows to their own streaming platforms, and sell the CW.
The only shows that will likely survive the purge will be All-American, Walker, and Walker Independence. There are supposed to be 2 other renewal slots. It’s a guess if that will include All-American Homecoming, Superman & Lois, or Kung-Fu. I can’t see the new Gotham Knights show doing gangbusters in the ratings since there is nothing compelling about the show and it doesn’t connect to either the Arroverse or Superman & Lois’ universe. (Why did GK’s creators bother creating another adopted son for Bruce Wayne when he already has 3 sons in the comics?)
Except Superman and Lois has to be one of the most expensive shows. So, if there is to cheap things down. I could see either Kung Fu or Walker. Most likely Walker. Maybe both, since they have already renewed All American. It’s such a pity. They had some great shows.
Yeah, gen Z and gen Y aren’t the golf viewing crowd. I get boomers and silent generation still watch broadcast tv, but advertisers don’t pay a much for them.
I think this will end up attracting the older crowd, but alienating their current one and end up being a wash.
Their current demographic are boomers such as myself. The type of boomer who has been watching the sci-fi, superhero and action shows, etc, on the CW is highly unlikely to watch golf. There was an earlier commenter who compared watching golf to watching paint dry. Personally I would chose the paint.
They don’t care about current CW viewers. They WANT to drive you away. You won’t recognize The CW in a year or two. That’s their game.
W. T. F… ? 😳
Hopefully this will be two birds one stone: kill off the CW and the government atrocities whitewashing fake sport league.
Despicable move being involved with LIV. I look forward to this network’s colossal ‘crash and burn.’
100%
Someone needs to re-engineer the new Prez… What a joke this network is becoming…
Saudi LIV golf hosted by TFG from home confinement.
They frequently use TFG owned properties.
This means TFG has been taking Saudi money for years. Also called kickbacks.
We should be as unwelcoming to this as we’d be of any North Korean “entertainment” content.
A Saudi golf league??? What the heck? Why?
RIP CW
I am not sure this helps either party. It might bring a few more viewers for the league. But CW is very low rated as a whole. And watching golf exibitions with no stakes on the weekend when you can watch other sporting events with real stakes on other networks. Not impressed with the new management. Especially if they only intend three actual scripted shows next season. CW was really good there for a time.
Yeah, the young-skewing viewers of the CW are going to flock to these golf tournaments in droves. NOT. I can’t even imagine what kinds of shows they’ll have in store to fill in the time between the golf.
They don’t skew young at all. They are retooling because the average age of the CW viewer is 58.
You anti LIV holes are more hypocritical than you were/are about Hitler’s genocide when he got the idea from your colonization’s playbook.
we have a hard enough time finding truTV in March
I wish cw would’ve picked up the final season of snowpicerer since tnt dropped it
Are people seriously complaining about CW showing live sports? Why would this be any different than the NFL, NBA, etc? It’s just a sport event that fills a timeslot.
Cause people want to watch the NFL, NBA etc… who wants to watch this Saudi sponsored golf exhibition?
Cause it’s blood money. It’s not live sports. It’s Saudi sponsored fake sports.
If you think other sports don’t have blood money, I have a bridge to sell ya.
Thank You, CW, for bringing Golf to your network.
As a long time viewer, I rushed home from work to watch shows like Smallville in my 30s, I spend lazy weekend mornings watching the Arrowverse shows in my 40s, and now, in my 50s, I’m ready to fall asleep on the couch, watching CW golf.
Yes, Golf – helping people fall asleep faster than a double doses of Melatonin and a weighted blanket.
Throwing a symphony broadcast from some orchestra concert hall, and the strongest of Energy Drinks will be powerless to the CW Q-Tip line
Lol
A good network down the drain! Nobody cares about golf!
The only good thing is this removes most of the shows I watch so it’ll be easier to get rid of my cable.
Lots of people care about golf. I don’t, but a lot do.
And there’s a whole channel plus multiple other channels carrying it. The CW didn’t need to jump on board with an unproven novice league or conference that the PGA is determined to kill faster than whatever that football league was a while back…
“The CW recognizes the enormous interest in and potential of our league.” I think your perception if off. Very few people are interested in golf. I think you are doing this just for ratings. There are plenty of Sports Network channels to view this and other sports. We don’t need more. If it is NOT broke don’t fix it. Pretty soon there will not be any broadcasts or streaming if our govt has anything to do with it.
Isn’t this the tournament that is 93% owned by journalist murdering tyrant Saudi person known as MBS and also 100% funded by him?
Can’t link here but Google “liv golf mbs”. Newsweek lays it out.
This is not a good thing. We should be rejecting anything to do with a tyrant that is up there with the North Korean dictator. Not condoning and welcoming him.
I’d rather see more superhero crap. At least they’re tolerable. Golf? C’mon son. You can do better than this.
Buh bye CW. While I enjoyed a number of shows on your network over the years, your partnership with the Saudis put an end to our relationship. I might say I wish you well i your future endeavors, but I really don’t.
Thanks CW…… now we can literally watch grass grow!!!! THATs better than the shows you have. smh
It’s only on weekends, when the CW didn’t air any originals anyway. And it’s only a handful of weekends at that. So I don’t see what the big deal is.
Hey, Nexstar:
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I hate to break it to you, but I’m in your new target demographic and I don’t like to watch paint dry (ie: watch golf, which sucks even as background noise).
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And I sure as hell don’t support the murderous scumbag MBS, the majority owner of LIV. Nevermind the additional issue of the 9/11 hijackers and their families having ties to the Saudi royal family. Support for MBS in any way, shape, or form is support for terrorism.
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And *then* add in the Saudi royal family’s ties to the 9/11 hijackers, especially through the Bin Laden family and, well, when you support MBS, you support terrorism.
So what’s the over/under on how long that guy will remain President?
Given the way the Saudi’s throw money around, I’m guessing the CW probably made more money on this one deal than they have for all the programing in the past three years. So…I’m betting he will remain President longer than most of you think he will.
If I wanted to watch sports, I would have the sports packages. There are enough crappy sports on the good channels to ruin regular viewing and now we have another. Too bad.