ESPN Masters Programming Notes
Watson, Johnson Swings Analyzed by ESPN Sports Science
ESPN’s multiplatform coverage of the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club this week will include three ESPN Sports Science segments centered on golf and the Masters. The segments will appear across all ESPN programming from the Tournament.
One feature analyzes the swings of Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson, two of the longest drivers in pro golf. The segment shows the differences in their swings but demonstrates that off the tee, their clubhead speed of 120 mph is 25 percent faster than the average hobby golfer. With ball contact of only half of a millisecond, the two pros generate 3,000 pounds of force, sending the ball away at 180 mph for average drives of more than 300 yards.
Another ESPN Sports Science segment examines what makes the 9th hole on Augusta’s Par 3 course more prone to producing holes-in-one during the Masters Par 3 Contest, which airs Wednesday, April 6, at 3 p.m. on ESPN, ESPN 3D and ESPN3.com. The third segment focuses on the science that makes putts “lip out.”
ESPN’s coverage also will include essays written by ESPN the Magazine’s Wright Thompson and narrated by Harry Connick Jr.
Jack Nicklaus Documentary Airs Wednesday Night
On the 25th anniversary of one of the most memorable moments in sports history, ESPN Films looks back at Jack Nicklaus’ win in the 1986 Masters in a one-hour documentary airing Wednesday, April 6, at 6 p.m. ET on ESPN. Yes Sir: Jack Nicklaus and the ’86 Masters will explore the magnitude of what happened on April 13, 1986, when the 46-year-old Nicklaus charged from behind and won the Masters for the sixth time. He became the oldest player ever to earn the coveted Green Jacket at a time when many believed the legendary golfer would never win another tournament.
The film includes fresh new perspective from Nicklaus, his son and caddy Jackie, and others such as Tiger Woods, Greg Norman and Tom Watson who offer special insight into the Nicklaus’ achievement. In the film, Woods, who became the youngest ever to win the Masters 11 years to the day after Nicklaus’ historic win, and Nicklaus sit down separately to watch highlights of the 1986 Masters and discuss their golfing careers then and now.
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Media Contact: Andy Hall, 386-492-2246 or [email protected]
