Golf Channel survives strike nicely so far with its coverage at CareerBuilder Challenge

The Desert Sun golf reporter Larry Bohannan shares his views on the CareerBuilder Challenge:

You may have heard that Golf Channel, which broadcasts all four rounds of the CareerBuilder Challenge, is having a labor dispute with the union representing a variety of technicians who normally work their golf broadcasts. But last week those technicians went out on strike as negotiations for a new contract ended. Sunday’s broadcast of the Sony Open from Hawaii was, well, not going to win any Emmys.

There were obvious concerns that the caliber of the Sunday broadcast in Hawaii might be the caliber of the broadcasts at the CareerBuilder, but not just for one day but all four days of the event. That hasn’t been the case.

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Whether it was that Golf Channel was caught flat-footed in Hawaii or just that the desert tournament is easier to cover, the broadcasts so far have been up to standards. That doesn’t mean that everything has been perfect, and there is no way for most of us to know exactly what is going on behind the scenes.

But in terms of what Golf Channel is putting on your television screen, there are plenty of Golf Channel carts zooming around the course, and plenty of camera angles to watch and on-site voices to listen to.

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Of course, the best thing for everyone going forward would be to settle the strike, let the technicians get back to work and have Golf Channel not have to scramble to fill jobs or find ways to get the jobs done. But that’s up to the negotiators on both sides. For now, Golf Channel is getting the broadcast on the air, and it’s much better than it was in Hawaii.