Key Points
- Amazon Prime Video will offer two hours of exclusive coverage of the Masters golf tournament, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET, Thursday and Friday.
- Amazon will have no connection to its e-commerce business during the broadcast. On the contrary, it will respect the strict rules for broadcasting the Masters.
- Amazon is only the fourth media partner in Masters history, joining CBS, USA Network and ESPN.
A version of this article first appeared in the CNBC Sport newsletter with Alex Sherman, bringing you the biggest news and exclusive interviews from the world of sports and media. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox. The sports world’s attention turns to Augusta, Ga., on Thursday with the first round of the Masters golf tournament. For the first time, viewers can find live coverage of the tournament on Amazon Prime Video. Amazon is offering exclusive live coverage of the event from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET Thursday and Friday during Rounds 1 and 2. During all four days of the tournament, Prime Video will produce live coverage from Amen Corner, Augusta’s famous 11th, 12th and 13th holes. Amazon’s “Inside Amen Corner” will feature advanced statistics and tailored camera angles designed to give the viewer insight into how different players strategically attack all three holes. The streamer will also cover the 15th and 16th holes during all four days and feature some featured bands, although it will not produce this content. Amazon is Augusta National’s fourth media partner, following Paramount’s CBS; USA Network, owned by Versant, from 1982 to 2007; and Disney’s ESPN. Last year, the Masters, led by chairman Fred Ridley, became part of Paramount+ with two hours of exclusive streaming coverage on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 2 p.m. ET. This will also continue this year. The appeal of holding a share of the Masters rights for Amazon may not be as straightforward as it is for other sports properties. Typically, sports serves multiple purposes for Amazon. They add value to Amazon Prime and connect to Amazon’s e-commerce business, which includes clothing and sporting goods. They also command higher advertising rates because unlike most other programming on Prime Video or peer streaming services, sports are watched live. It’s possible that the Masters will bring new subscribers to Prime Video, but the real value for Amazon is in the halo effect. Having even a few hours of exclusive Masters coverage increases the value of Prime Video’s entire sports portfolio. On the e-commerce front, the Masters is about as anti-commercial as any sporting event in history. Advertisements during the broadcast, limited to approximately four minutes per hour, come only from the Masters’ official sponsors: IBM, AT&T, Bank of America and Mercedes-Benz. Amazon won’t inject anything into streaming to highlight its e-commerce business, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC. To do business with Augusta National, Amazon must follow the club’s rules. Part of that deal includes assurances from Amazon that the show’s coverage would keep that image traditional and intact, said the person, who asked not to be named because the discussions were private. “We look forward to a long-term relationship with Prime Video,” Ridley said Wednesday during his annual Masters press conference. “We need to look for non-traditional ways to promote the tournament, but even more so golf.” Ridley acknowledged a “tension” between respecting tradition and innovation and said Augusta struggles with that every year. He cited the club’s decision to ask YouTube creators Dude Perfect to play frisbee at Amen Corner in 2022 as an example of Augusta’s willingness to try different things to reach new audiences. “In retrospect, I like those guys, but maybe it wasn’t the best idea,” Ridley said. “But thematically, we’re certainly willing to think outside the box from time to time.” Amazon’s primary coverage on Days 1 and 2 will look a lot like that of ESPN and CBS. “They’re clearly optimizing the right fan experience, what they think is the right streaming experience, to build something that’s incredibly valuable over the long term,” Jay Marine, Prime Video’s head of sports, told The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand last year after Amazon announced its deal for the Masters. Still, it’s clear that the Masters wants streaming partners to be part of the viewing experience. And for its part, Amazon will get data on how golf is played on the service. Amazon got into golf on Black Friday with a Skins game featuring Keegan Bradley, Xander Schauffele, Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry. Given Amazon’s seemingly limitless desire for big sports properties, Prime Video will likely be looking for more golf — if its streaming audience responds. Disclosure: CNBC and USA Network are divisions of Versant Media.