events on the GV calendar as well as deliver special interviews , tips , rules and news from around the state . Thirty-two videos later and over 121,500 views across YouTube and Facebook , GVTV has helped showcase golf in a way that was not previously possible in the old media landscape .
Golf Australia ( GA ) and the PGA of Australia have also been on the front foot embracing new initiatives with GA introducing Emirates Australian Open Radio ( AO Radio ) and the PGA recently launching PGA TV . AO Radio and its lineup of talent including Mark Allen , Andy Maher , Mike Clayton , Martin Blake , Daniel Harford and Mark Hayes have added a new dimension for spectators at the course and for listeners around the world tuning in via the tournament app or a selection of radio stations .
PGA TV ’ s intention is to showcase more of the Australian professional events on the ISPS HANDA PGA Tour of Australasia through live streaming , with many lower profile events previously only generating written coverage or the occasional radio cross .
And , as of late May , an exciting new golf podcast called ‘ Inside the Ropes ’ is available to listen to at www . golf . org . au and through many podcast audio platforms such as iTunes and Stitcher . What ’ s a podcast , you ask ? Think audio on-demand ! You listen to the audio when it ’ s convenient for you . national show running for approximately 40 minutes , covering all aspects of Australian golf and delivering some compelling interviews with a variety of guests that golf fans will love . On top of the national show , Golf Victoria will have approximately 10 minutes of Victorian specific content each week , available for free to all Victorians via golfvic . org . au . This same model will be rolled out to other state bodies around the country .
So , going forwards , what can golf do better ? In a nutshell , become a media company .
Thanks to the Internet and burgeoning technology , golf no longer needs to sit back and hope it gets picked up by an established ( and often now declining ) media organisation . We should choose to pick ourselves ! The more quality content we can produce to attract audiences and add value to participants of our great game , the better off we ’ ll be .
Despite no longer needing to rely on media companies to give golf content oxygen , would it be advantageous to generate further coverage from traditional media sources ? Absolutely . Traditional media is still highly valuable but the way it operates has changed so golf must adjust with that change .
Here ’ s to more live streaming of golf events , to more written coverage of all aspects of the game , to more videos providing interesting insights and tips , to more audio coverage and to developing media assets that make traditional media take notice .
Greg Oakford
Marketing & Communications Manager Golf Victoria
‘ Inside the Ropes ’ is an initiative from Golf Australia and many of the state bodies around the country including Golf Victoria . There will be a weekly www . instagram . com / GregOakford / https :// twitter . com / GregOakford
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