Fox Sports has "assembled an on-air and production team with extensive experience" as the net makes it foray into golf in '15, according to Martin Kaufmann of GOLFWEEK. Fox execs are "determined to find new and better ways to present golf to television viewers, particularly through the use of new technologies." The job of executing Fox' strategy "falls heavily" on Coordinating Producer Mark Loomis, who previously produced golf on ABC and ESPN. Fox "hinted" at its new tech during the Franklin Templeton Shootout in December, but "promises they'll be on full display" during June's U.S. Open. Fox Sports President & COO Eric Shanks said, "We want the U.S. Open to have a bit of sizzle to it." Kaufmann notes Fox is "looking for tools that haven't been used before in golf." Shanks said that he likes the Protracer tech used by other nets, but he "doesn't plan to use it." Loomis and Shanks "talked about a desire to bring more of a three-dimensional look to viewers' two-dimensional screens." Fox in December "teased one potential idea ... that Shanks compared to using X-ray goggles on green contours." The net also is "looking at ways to give viewers a greater sense of distances on shots from tee to green." Shanks: "Every third millimeter of a course is mapped on 3-D today. So you can look at a course through a camera lens or you can look at it like a video game, and you can see it in 3-D space. And when you merge those two things, you're able to create the depth by placing graphics or virtual elements." Kaufmann notes drones "figure to be heavily used," along with "tiny 'spider' cameras offering new angles, including directly in front of tee boxes." Shanks also "promised that there will be some version of its 'Fox Box'" leaderboard (GOLFWEEK, 1/19 issue).
