TV/Radio

Remote patrol: NBC on PGA beat and Miller's excited

By JOHN C. COTEY
Published March 4, 2005

NBC will have live PGA tournament coverage from the Doral Golf Resort and Spa this weekend, the first of five straight weeks of coverage of the "Southern Swing."

The tournament boasts 11 of the top 12 players in the world rankings. NBC will cover the event from 3-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, with USA Network providing second-round coverage from 3-6 p.m. today.

Analyst Johnny Miller said he is looking forward to the tour this year because it's no longer all about Tiger Woods as Phil Mickelson and Vijay Singh have widened the field of favorites.

"I think that right now it's balanced," Miller said. "It reminds me a lot - well, I hate to say it, it sounds like I'm patting myself on the back - but the glory days of the '70s when you had almost 12 players who were just guns.

Fox's coverage of the NASCAR race from California last week produced a 7.9 national rating (12.7-million viewers), the highest overnight rating for a regular-season opener (excluding Daytona) on Fox since the 2001 race from Rockingham, which followed the death of Dale Earnhardt. That race had an 8.2.

The 7.9 topped last year's second race on the schedule (Rockingham with 6.6) by 20 percent.

Of the 55 metered markets, 39 had higher ratings for the race than last year. In Tampa Bay, the race drew a 10.2 compared to 9.3 last year.

Fox will televise the Busch Series race from Mexico at 3 p.m. Sunday.

ESPN is going all out for its coverage at 2 p.m. Sunday of the IndyCar Series opener, simulcasting the race on ESPN2 with completely different coverage.

While ESPN will carry traditional coverage, ESPN2 will have a live telecast using only in-car cameras for the Toyota Indy 300 from the Homestead-Miami Speedway.

The cars of Patrick Carpentier, Scott Dixon, Bryan Herta, Tony Kanaan, Danica Patrick , Tomas Scheckter and Scott Sharp will have the cameras. ESPN2's simulcast will feature no national commercial breaks and only five local breaks, which will be taken at different times from the ESPN commercials so fans don't have to miss a second of racing.

Gary Gerould will call the play-by-play with 1999 Indianapolis 500 champion Kenny Brack. On ESPN, Todd Harris will team with analysts Gil de Ferran and Scott Goodyear.

The FSN Baseball Report, the network's new spring training show, premieres tonight and will air every Friday through April 1 at 6 and 7:30 p.m. . . . Sun Sports will carry the first round of the SEC men's basketball tournament live Thursday, with games at 1, 3:30, 7:30 and 10 p.m. . . . ABC will carry the Fountain of Youth and Santa Catalina Stakes thoroughbred races at 5 p.m. Saturday. . . . Cheap Seats, the ESPN Classic comedy series starring twins Randy and Jason Sklar, returns for its second season at 10 p.m. Monday. A new half-hour episode will air each Monday at 10 p.m., followed immediately by an encore. Encore presentations of past episodes will air Tuesday through Friday nights at 10 p.m., and the show will add a live studio audience part way through the second season.

[Last modified March 4, 2005, 00:31:15]