Gary Williams has taken over morning studio programming on Golf Channel.
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It’s the beginning of a brand-new golf season — and that features the parents chargeable for bringing golf tv to life.
The brand new golf 12 months has birthed no scarcity of developments within the golf world, however one of the vital notable has arrived every morning on Golf Channel, the place a brand-new studio present has entered the community’s early morning airwaves: 5 Golf equipment.
If the identify sounds acquainted to you … it ought to! “5 Golf equipment” is the identify of each the brand new studio present and the manufacturing firm that owns it — a present that has run for a number of years in different types on YouTube and SiriusXM. Gary Williams is the longtime host of the present, a veteran sports activities TV man whose resume features a prolonged stint because the morning studio host on … Golf Channel!
To state it barely extra plainly: Sure, Williams is again within the fold at Golf Channel in ’25 after leaving the community in 2020 on the finish of his longtime morning present, Morning Drive. His new position will look … so much like his previous one, bringing golf information and perception to the viewers of the game’s devoted cable community for a couple of hours each Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday morning. This time, although, Williams will even function govt producer of the present, which can be produced off-site from the community’s Stamford HQ.
5 Golf equipment marks the most recent in a rising pattern of studio reveals bought as turnkey manufacturing belongings by cable networks. Whereas Golf Channel’s association isn’t almost as all-encompassing as ESPN’s deal with Pat McAfee, the 2 agreements share the identical sort of DNA on this means.
“It began with a cellphone name two weeks after the Masters with Tom Knapp (the EVP of programming at Golf Channel),” Williams stated in an interview with Terrible Asserting. “He stated, ‘Look, let me simply say this. And you may cease me and say not . However what would you concentrate on 5 Golf equipment being the morning present on Golf Channel in January of 2025?’ I felt like saying, ‘Why did you assume my response could be something aside from pleasure and enthusiasm?’ Which it clearly was.”
Although Williams maintains a say within the editorial form and voice of the present, he stated he’s leaning on Golf Channel’s editorial experience, notably Knapp and Golf Channel govt producer Matt Hegarty, to carry shade and texture to the present.
“I don’t need them to really feel like they’re taking a look at us like we’re some satellite tv for pc on an island working with autonomy, which we’re,” Williams stated .”I’m the chief producer of the present, however I need collaboration. I’ve nice respect for the individuals who have run the programming aspect plus the participant relation aspect. My communication with them can be fixed.”
