With more offerings than ever for sports fans, ESPN will have multiplatform coverage of the 112th U.S. Open at Olympic Club in San Francisco June 12-18 with live action as well as expansive analysis, news and information on television, radio, online and mobile devices.
Telecasts of the first two rounds of golf’s toughest test on Thursday and Friday, June 14-15, are expanded by an hour this year and will offer live prime time viewing for golf fans. ESPN, ESPN3 and WatchESPN will air eight hours of live play each day on Thursday and Friday from noon – 3 p.m. and 5-10p.m. ET. An edited encore presentation from each of the first two rounds will air on ESPN2 and WatchESPN in the overnight hours from 1-4 a.m. and both also will air edited highlights from Saturday and Sunday’s third and final round action. If a playoff is necessary, ESPN will air the first two hours on Monday, June 18, at noon.
ESPN Radio will have exclusive live coverage of all four days of tournament play as well as special programming and reports that can be heard on both terrestrial and satellite radio, online at ESPNRadio.com and on mobile devices with the ESPN Radio app.
ESPN’s flagship news and information program, SportsCenter, will originate from the tournament site with special SportsCenter presented by IBM at the U.S. Open programs for seven consecutive days beginning Tuesday, June 12, as well as extensive reports on the hour throughout each day.
Chris Berman, who has covered the U.S. Open for ESPN every year since 1986, will host the live telecasts on Thursday and Friday as well as the weekend highlight programs, while Mike Tirico will call the early-day action on Thursday and Friday with 1993 PGA champion Paul Azinger as analyst.
ESPN’s U.S. Open team for the Thursday and Friday telecasts also includes two-time U.S. Open champions Curtis Strange (hole announcer) and Andy North (on-course reporter) and World Golf Hall of Famer Judy Rankin (on-course reporter). Other hole announcers will be Scott Van Pelt, Terry Gannon and Sean McDonough, while Bill Kratzert also will report from the course. Reporter Tom Rinaldi will conduct player interviews and ESPN the Magazine columnist Rick Reilly will contribute essays.
NBC will again produce the telecasts, with announcer contributions from analyst Roger Maltbie, who will join Berman for Thursday and Friday’s afternoon play.
Among features that will be presented during ESPN’s coverage of the U.S. Open:
- ESPN.com senior national columnist Gene Wojciechowski profiles 1955 U.S. Open champion Jack Fleck, the oldest living winner of the tournament.
- The dreaded “snowman” (8), a number no golfer wants to see, and how it came into play in the last U.S. Open held at Olympic Club in 1998.
- Father’s Day with Masters champion Bubba Watson.
- Reilly on where Tiger Woods’ career is now.
- The recurring issue of slow play in professional golf.
ESPN, which began televising the first and second rounds of the U.S. Open in 1982, is airing the tournament for the 31st consecutive year. The event has been in the ESPN/ABC family of networks since 1966.
SportsCenter presented by IBM at the U.S. Open
One-hour SportsCenter presented by IBM at the U.S. Open programs air Tuesday and Wednesday, June 12-13, at 2 p.m. on ESPN2 and Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, June 15-18, at midnight on ESPN2. There also are programs on Saturday and Sunday at 1:30 p.m., both airing on ESPN. All U.S. Open SportsCenter programs also will stream live on WatchESPN.
Scott Van Pelt will host the programs with analyst Andy North and reporter Tom Rinaldi. Also contributing to SportsCenter coverage will be analysts Curtis Strange and Paul Azinger, ESPN.com senior national columnist Gene Wojciechowski, ESPN the Magazine columnist Rick Reilly and host John Anderson.
Regular editions of SportsCenter will have reports from the U.S. Open on the hour beginning Tuesday of tournament week.
ESPN Radio’s Four-Round U.S. Open Coverage
ESPN Radio’s third straight broadcast of the U.S. Open Championship tees off Wednesday, June 13, with a one-hour preview special at 1 a.m. ET leading to the network’s 24 live hours of tournament play Thursday-Sunday from the Olympic Club in San Francisco.
Commentators contributing to ESPN Radio’s live coverage from the Olympic Club include: Doug Bell, Bill Kratzert, Sean McDonough, Dennis Paulson, Bill Rosinski, Curtis Strange and Bob Wischusen. Chuck Wilson will host U.S. Open studio programming featuring a preview and Rounds 2-3-4 recaps, while Amy Lawrence will host the opening round review show.
ESPN Radio’s U.S. Open coverage will be simulcast on Slacker Radio and Tune-in Radio, as well as on ESPNRadio.com and via the ESPN Radio app on smartphones and tablets. It will also be available on Sirius XM Radio: Rounds 1 and 2 on ESPN Xtra (Channel 85), and Rounds 3 and 4 on ESPN Radio (Channel 84).
ESPN Radio’s Four-Round U.S. Open Coverage (All Times Eastern)
| Thursday, June 14 | 1-7 p.m. |
| Friday, June 15 | 1-7 p.m. |
| Saturday, June 16 | 4-10 p.m. |
| Sunday, June 17 | 4-10 p.m. |
ESPN Radio’s Preview & Review Shows
| Thursday, June 14 | 2012 U.S. Open Preview Special | 1-2 a.m. |
| Friday, June 15 | First Round Recap Special | 2-3 a.m. |
| Saturday, June 16 | Second Round Recap Special | 1-2 a.m. |
| Sunday, June 17 | Third Round Recap Special | 1-2 a.m. |
| Monday, June 18 | 2012 U.S. Open Recap Special | 2-3 a.m. |
The U.S. Open on ESPN Digital Platforms
WatchESPN
All U.S. Open programming on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN3 is also available on computers, smartphones and tablets through WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app, which are accessible to fans who receive their video service from affiliated providers Bright House Networks, Comcast, Time Warner and Verizon FiOS TV.
ESPN.com and espnW.com
- News, blogs and columns from ESPN.com national columnist Gene Wojciechowski, senior golf writers Farrell Evans and Bob Harig and ESPNNewYork.com writer Ian O’Connor.
- espnW.com writer Michelle Smith will be on-site Thursday-Sunday.
- “Digital Drive,” an exclusive ESPN.com program hosted by Rick Reilly, will be produced each day.
- “CoverItLive” live chat with Michael Collins throughout the championship.
- “Red Light/Green Light” with Collins each day, examining pin placements on selected holes.
- The “Road to the U.S. Open” series, which began May 30, has offered extensive coverage of the U.S. Open sectionals and Olympic Club.
- The ESPN Golf Cast application, which offers an easy-to-use interface with scoring, “CoverItLive,” video and social media elements.
- Best Ball Majors, U.S. edition, the third installment of the ESPN Best Ball Challenge.
- Interactive leaderboards and live scores.
- Extensive video content, including highlights, analysis, clips from SportsCenter and press conferences.
- Photo galleries, podcasts, live chats, SportsNation polling.
- Mobile WAP site.
ESPN3
ESPN’s live multi-screen sports network will carry ESPN’s telecast of the first and second rounds on Thursday and Friday, June 14-15, from noon-3 p.m. (Part I) and 5-10 p.m. (Part II). In addition, ESPN3 will have three exclusive feeds, including a morning and afternoon featured group from noon-8 p.m., the 8th and 18th holes and a Spanish-language feed for Part II coverage each day.
Trey Wingo will host the featured group coverage, with analysts Bill Kratzert and David Duval, the veteran PGA TOUR player making his debut as an analyst. Mark Donaldson will be the on-course reporter. Jim Kelly will host the 8th/18th hole coverage with former major winner Tom Weiskopf as analyst and Kim Thomas reporting from the course.
ESPN Mobile
Live mobile video simulcasts of ESPN’s first- and second-round telecasts on June 14-15 and SportsCenter presented by IBM at the U.S. Open programs preview shows Friday-Monday will appear on ESPN Mobile. The Best of the U.S. Open programs for all four rounds also will be simulcast.
News, highlights and a U.S. Open leaderboard will appear on the ESPN Mobile website and there will be U.S. Open Insider content, news and columns and scoring alerts for top players.
Additional coverage of the U.S. Open on ESPN platforms:
ESPN International
The U.S. Open on ESPN platforms will reach some 133 countries and more than 218 million international households, with coverage in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Mandarin and Cantonese. Latin America will also feature live coverage and exclusive feeds (Holes 8 & 18 and a featured group) via ESPN Play (broadband). In Canada, TSN will carry all four rounds of the tournament live along with streaming coverage on TSN Mobile TV and TSN.ca.
ESPN the Magazine
In the “Women in Sports” issue that hit newsstands June 1, ESPN the Magazine has a close look at San Francisco’s Olympic Club and how difficult it is expected to be for the competitors in the U.S. Open. The “Playbook” piece examines the course’s greens, runoffs, primary and deep rough areas and the trees, with comments from ESPN analyst Curtis Strange, USGA director Mike Davis and others.
ESPNEWS
SportsCenter on ESPNEWS will offer all the latest U.S. Open news beginning Tuesday, June 12, with reports on the hour from Olympic Club.
ESPN Classic
ESPN Classic will feature 35 hours of classic U.S. Open golf films leading into live coverage of the first round of the U.S. Open on ESPN. The U.S. Open Golf Marathon begins at midnight on Wednesday, June 13, and runs through Thursday, June 14, at noon. The special programming also includes U.S. Open anniversary tributes to players including Jack Nicklaus and Tom Watson on June 15 and June 18-21.
ESPN on Demand
Available in more than 38 million households, ESPN on Demand will offer viewers the opportunity to watch some classic U.S. Open tournaments from the past, including Tiger Woods’ victories in 2000, 2005 and 2008, Jack Nicklaus’ last win in 1980, Lee Jantzen’s 1998 win at Olympic and Rory McIlroy’s victory last year.
Interactive Television
The four-screen U.S. Open Mix will air on DirecTV (channels 701-705) for all four days of the championship. Channel 1 will carry the live ESPN or NBC television coverage, while Channels 2 and 3 will cover Featured Groups 1 and 2, respectively (players in both groups to be determined). Channel 4 will cover the 8th and 18th holes.
112th U.S. Open Championship – Olympic Club, San Francisco, CA
(all times Eastern)
| Day/Date | Program | Start | Network |
| Tue., June 12 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | 2 p.m. | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Wed., June 13 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | 2 p.m. | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Wed., June 13 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | 11 p.m. | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Thu., June 14 | First Round (Part 1) | Noon | ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN |
| Thu., June 14 | First Round (Part 2) | 5 p.m. | ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN |
| Fri., June 15 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | Midnight | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Fri., June 15 | Best of the U.S. Open pres. by Titleist | 1 a.m. | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Fri., June 15 | Second Round (Part 1) | Noon | ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN |
| Fri., June 15 | Second Round (Part 2) | 5 p.m. | ESPN, ESPN3, WatchESPN |
| Sat., June 16 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | Midnight | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Sat., June 16 | Best of the U.S. Open pres. by Titleist | 1 p.m. | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Sat., June 16 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | 1:30 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN |
| Sun., June 17 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | Midnight | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Sun., June 17 | Best of the U.S. Open | 2 a.m. | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Sun., June 17 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | 1:30 p.m. | ESPN, WatchESPN |
| Mon., June 18 | SportsCenter pres. by IBM at the U.S. Open | Midnight | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Mon., June 18 | Best of the U.S. Open | 1 a.m. | ESPN2, WatchESPN |
| Mon., June 18 | Playoff (if necessary) | Noon | ESPN, WatchESPN |
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