NBC Sports has an all-female broadcast team convene the first LPGA Tour event in October. The ShopRite LPGA Classic on the Bay Course at Seaview in Galloway, NJ, October 1-3 on GOLF Channel will feature the first-ever all-women golf team in US television history.
The team of historical commentators features Cara Banks who is led from game to game while she is flanked by analysts Judy Rankin and Paige Mackenzie and reporters Karen Stupples and Kay Cockerill.
“We are thrilled to bring together this incredibly accomplished group of women for our ShopRite LPGA Classic broadcast on the GOLF Channel,” said Molly Solomon, executive producer for NBC Olympics and GOLF Channel.
Solomon made history in her field as the first woman to work for a national sports network in her current NBC role. A woman with history writing experience also produces the tournament coverage. NBC Sports and GOLF Channel producer Beth Hutter takes on the production duties. She has over 15 years of experience and is the first woman to produce the US Women’s Open at the Olympic Club and the women’s golf coverage at the Tokyo Olympics.
“Our NBC Sports team is made up of talented women at all levels,” continued Solomon. “Both in front of the camera and behind the scenes – which are critical to our coverage being a success on every platform, and we are honored to celebrate your work on this show.”
This upcoming broadcast is part of over 500 hours of golf coverage for women in 2021, the most time NBC has ever devoted to women’s golf. The event is in line with other groundbreaking achievements over the past two years.
The network aired a female-only NHL show last March and had Rene Hatfield produce the Indy 500 in 2021. She is the first female producer in history to do so. Lindsey Schanzer accomplished the same feat in Triple Crown racing production when she produced Preakness and Belmont Stakes on NBC earlier this year.