NBC Sports Group Teams with Whistle Sports for 145th OPEN

In conjunction with its inaugural year as the exclusive U.S. television rights holder of The Open (July 14-17), NBC Sports Group worked in collaboration with Whistle Sports, a digital sports media company with a network of more than 400 sports social influencers creating content across social, digital and TV platforms. Together they produced a creative promotional campaign that showcases the severe playing conditions synonymous with golf's original major championship in an amusing, unconventional way.

The content activation, which was filmed in New York City, showcases a customized indoor golf simulator featuring Royal Troon - the host course venue for the 2016 Open - with surprise elements coming into play on every swing. With the help of European golf instructors Peter Finch and Rick Shiels, unsuspecting golfers are invited to test their merits as they encounter iconic conditions that mirror those at The Open.

Real fescue-like long grass is used to simulate the challenges players will face at The Open when they miss the fairway, and a miniature bunker with real sand (and rake) represents the tricky bunkering associated with links golf. Finch and Shiels make things even more difficult for those in the simulator by blowing leaf blowers and squirting water in the faces to simulate The Open's iconic windy and rainy conditions in a fun, unorthodox way.

The result is a comical four-minute video being disseminated via multiple social platforms, including Whistle Sports' Facebook, Instagram and Youtube channel, along with Golf Channel's social media platforms. In addition to the full clip, several "shorts" are being shared via Facebook and Instagram outlining specific elements, including how to tackle shots from the fescue, when battle the rain, and conquer the wind. Other "shorts" include advice from Finch and Shiels on how to be most successful when playing Royal Troon along with a behind-the-scenes clip from the shoot.

Reaction to the campaign has gained the attention of many in the few days since initially launching the video on Friday. To-date, the video has already eclipsed more than 1 million views and reached more than 2 million users. The 3,500-plus social interactions in response to Golf Channel's social channels having shared the video are more than three times Golf Channel's average.

The 145THOpen will be hosted at Royal Troon from July 14-17, and will mark NBC Sports Group's first opportunity to showcase golf's original championship, which dates back to 1860. As part of a new 13-year partnership with The R&A, NBC Sports and Golf Channel will provide all-encompassing live coverage from the first tee shot through the final putt, culminating with the Champion Golfer of the Year raising the Claret Jug.

Nearly 50 hours of live tournament coverage - the most ever planned for a major championship - will be surrounded by nearly 60 hours of Golf Channel's comprehensive news coverage, highlighted by GOLF CENTRAL Live From The Open. NBC Sports Group's coverage also marks the return of The Open to U.S. broadcast television for the first time since 2009, and Golf Channel's first-ever live tournament coverage of a men's major championship.

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