Must-see TV waits at Pebble Beach
PEBBLE BEACH >> When does women's golf become must-see TV? When it's held at possibly the most picturesque place on Earth, and when it's on prime-time network television for the very first time.
“The two of them together is like a match made in heaven,” said Morgan Pressel, a golfer-turned-analyst for NBC Sports and Golf Channel.
The United States Golf Association loves the idea so much that, after hosting the U.S. Women's Open at Pebble Beach for the first time, it will return in 2035, 2040, and 2048.
“Fans want to see golf courses that they recognize,” said Michelle Wie West, the Stanford graduate and 2014 U.S. Women's Open champion. “They want to be able to recognize the shots that we're hitting, recognize the course that we're playing.”
Next weekend, network viewers will watch in prime time for the first time ever – a milestone for women's golf as it pushes for more recognition and bigger tournament purses.
“It's game-changing,” said Mike Whan, the USGA CEO, “not just for the players, but for the little girls that will watch it on prime-time television.”
Coverage of the third and final rounds will span six hours on both Saturday and Sunday, from noon to 6 p.m. (PT). Altogether there will be 26 hours of coverage over four days, including from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday and Friday (USA Network).
“People are going to tune in because they've heard of Pebble Beach,” Pressel said. “They might not have watched an LPGA event ever in their life, but they've heard of Pebble Beach, and here it is on Sunday evening, and they're flipping through channels and say, `Wow this is really amazing. This is some incredible golf. What an exciting event.' “
Which carries more weight for women's golf, this being at Pebble Beach or it being in prime-time television on the weekend?
“Pebble, in itself, is the impetus to even having it in prime-time, because it is such a coveted venue,” said on-course reporter Kay Cockerill, a San Jose native who played the LPGA tour from 1988-97.
What are people going to see?
“They're going to see incredible golf,” Pressel said, “and wonderful storytelling and hopefully shine light on new faces, obviously the top of the game now but potentially new faces, which is so special about a Women's Open.”
The newest star is 20-year-old Rose Zhang, who turned pro after repeating as the individual NCAA Champion out of Stanford. She won her pro debut June 1 at the Mizuho Americas Open in New Jersey, and she tied for eighth at the Women's PGA Championship on June 22. As for her history at Pebble Beach, she set the women's course record (9-under, 63) to win the Carmel Cup in September.
“I'm very excited to see what Rose Zhang can do on a golf course where she has the women's course record,” NBC Sports announcer Tom Abbott said. “That could be a massive boost for the LPGA Tour and for women's golf and for women's sports, in general.”
“She's a delight to watch,” added Cockerill. “The world is going to fall in love with her. Many already have.”
Pressel herself was just 12 when she became the then-youngest player to qualify for a U.S. Women's Open, in 2001. In 2007, at age 18, she became the youngest player to win an LPGA Tour event. She has played for Team USA six times at the Solheim Cup, and, two years ago, took a second job as television analyst.
“It's going to be epic,” Pressel said, “and it's going to be iconic.”