Steve Sands was on the course Sunday for NBC’s presentation of the TaylorMade Driving Relief skins game. On Monday, the reporter joined colleague Mike Tirico on NBCSN’s Lunch Talk Live to talk about the experience.
Sands, who covers golf for NBC Sports and GOLF Channel, says that he wasn’t surprised that TaylorMade and Rory McIlroy, Dustin Johnson, Rickie Fowler and Matthew Wolff, all of whom are sponsored by the company, staged an event to raise money for charity.
“No other organization raises more money than the PGA TOUR, and the players give their time. It’s what they do and part of the DNA of the sport.”
As for the event itself, Sands said that one thing he did not anticipate effecting him was the smaller crew that worked behind the scenes of the broadcast. “Only 28 people on the TV side,” he told Tirico, noting that usually the broadcast crew is upwards of 100 people.
What do other broadcasters need to know as sports prepare to return? Sands said that even in a smaller venue, even with a small scale event like TaylorMade Driving Relief, the lack of fans is hard to ignore.
“It was odd in a sense that it was quiet. When you’re going to a professional sporting event, you are there to see people even if it is a charity event. I think it’s going to be a really big deal to not have fans when the PGA TOUR and sports return.”
