The New York Times. April 04, 2020

THE NEW YORK TIMES, SATURDAY, APRIL 4, 2020 N B11

GOLF SCOREBOARD

The United States Golf Associa-
tion postponed the 75th United
States Women’s Open from early
June to mid-December on Friday,
a notable sign that golf’s govern-
ing bodies are seriously weighing
dates late this year as they scram-
ble to reschedule an ever-expand-
ing list of postponed women’s and
men’s events.
The women’s Open will now be
contested from Dec. 10 to 13 at the
Champions Golf Club in Houston,
which had been set to host the
event from June 4 to 7. It would be
the first women’s major held in
December.
“The U.S.G.A. remains commit-
ted to hosting the U.S. Women’s
Open in 2020,” said Mike Davis,
the U.S.G.A. chief executive. “Our
priority remains ensuring the
safety of all involved with the U.S.
Women’s Open, while still provid-
ing the world’s best players the
opportunity to compete this year.”
It is the third women’s major to
be postponed in recent weeks be-
cause of the coronavirus pan-
demic. The ANA Inspiration, orig-
inally scheduled for this month,
has been moved to Sept. 10-13. The
Evian Championship was moved
back two weeks to Aug. 6-9.
On Friday, the L.P.G.A. Tour
also postponed several events un-
til later in the year. The next
L.P.G.A. event — for now — is set
to begin June 19.
“We believe mid-June is do-
able,” Michael Whan, the L.P.G.A.
Tour commissioner, said in a con-
ference call with reporters on Fri-
day. “If it’s not doable, as I’ve said
many times, we have a mid-July
plan if we need another 30 days.”
The U.S.G.A. proposed moving
the U.S. Women’s Open to Decem-
ber, and Whan said that while he
would normally have been highly
skeptical, he had in recent weeks
grown accustomed to entertain-
ing atypical suggestions.
“Almost every conversation
starts with, ‘I’ve got an idea; it
might be a crazy one,’ ” Whan said.
He added: “I mean, I know the
U.S.G.A. didn’t say, ‘Dec. 7, man,
that would be a killer good date for
us.’ And so everybody is essen-
tially sort of taking one for the
team.”
Whan also acknowledged that
some of the events intended to
make up the 2020 golf season
could end up being contested in
2021.
The Women’s Open postpone-
ment is another disruption to the
golf calendar, joining the delayed
men’s majors — the Masters, usu-

ally played every April in Au- gusta, Ga., and the P.G.A. Champi- onship, which had been set for mid-May in San Francisco. No rescheduled dates have been announced. Another men’s major, the British Open, is leaning to- ward a postponement, perhaps until 2021. A decision on postponing the men’s U.S. Open, scheduled to be-

gin June 11 at the Winged Foot Golf Club in Westchester County, N.Y., is expected next week from the U.S.G.A., host of the tourna- ment. While the U.S.G.A. would like to keep the event at Winged Foot, its decision to move the Women’s Open to December — rather than an earlier month — signals an understanding that it may be more prudent to target

late 2020 as a potential landing spot for large events. But holding a U.S. Open in December would mean moving the event out of the Northeastern United States because of shorter daylight hours and winter weather. Even in Houston, the temperate location of the Women’s Open, the U.S.G.A. has had to make conces- sions to accommodate a winter start. It announced Friday that it would use two golf courses simul- taneously for the first two rounds of the event. Additionally, both the men’s and women’s Opens will be broadcast on Fox, which in December ex- pects to be broadcasting a full slate of pivotal, late-season N.F.L. games. The L.P.G.A. events postponed Friday were the Pelican Women’s Championship in the Tampa Bay area, which moves from mid-May to Nov. 12-15; the ShopRite

L.P.G.A. Classic in Atlantic City, which was slated to begin on May 29 but will now be contested from July 31 to Aug. 2; and the Meijer L.P.G.A. Classic in Michigan, a mid-June event that has yet to be rescheduled. The Pure Silk Cham- pionship in Virginia was canceled and will return in 2021. The Kia Classic in Carlsbad, Calif., postponed last month, was rescheduled to begin Sept. 24. Given the international makeup of a typical L.P.G.A. field, Whan said, one factor in suspending the schedule into June was to give players and their caddies the time and the freedom go home if they wanted. He said there was mount- ing anxiety about travel bans. “Rather than saying let’s check back in every two weeks, it just was becoming uncomfortable,” Whan said. “We were actually adding to anxiety, not relieving it, for a lot of our athletes.”

U.S. Women’s Open Is Rescheduled From June to December

Jeongeun Lee, above and left, won the 2019 United States Wom- en’s Open at the Country Club of Charleston in South Carolina. With the rescheduling, this year’s event at Champions Golf Club in Houston will be the first women’s major held in December.

STACY REVERE/GETTY IMAGES

JASEN VINLOVE/USA TODAY SPORTS, VIA REUTERS

By BILL PENNINGTON

scription payments as long as
sports remain postponed.
Some sports networks abroad
are also beginning to push back
against leagues. Canal+ in
France, Globo in Brazil and NENT
in the Nordic countries have all
suspended some rights payments.
Television is the biggest source
of revenue for American sports.
When people pay their monthly
television bills, their money goes
to television distributors, like
Comcast, which in turn pay televi-
sion networks, like ESPN, which
in turn pay sports leagues, like the
N.B.A. Along the way, everybody
keeps a cut.
But even if customers do not
watch a single game, the majority
of what they spend on bundled
television packages goes to sports
networks. That is because of the
structure of the bundles, where
customers pay one monthly price
for dozens or hundreds of chan-
nels.
Entertainment is available
widely on streaming services,
while news and sports program-
ming is increasingly the only rea-
son to still pay for bundled TV.
“Sports are the glue that holds
the bundle together,” Moffett said.
“Without live sports, the value
proposition to most households
just isn’t terribly compelling any-
more.”
Television viewership, espe-
cially for news programming, is
up lately, no doubt the conse-
quence of nearly 300 million
Americans’ being under orders to
stay at home. But with jobless
claims reaching a record high,
how many more people will look to
cut the cord or, at the very least,
push back on being charged for
sports without getting live
games?
“A lot of them are going to get
very familiar with how their TV
service actually works, and how
they can get rid of cable once and
for all,” said Dave Warner, who
created the website What You Pay
for Sports in 2013 to educate fans
about their television bills.
McPherson, the Verizon execu-
tive, said the company had re-
cently been reviewing its contrac-
tual relationships with networks
and leagues in an attempt to re-
duce what the roughly four million

Fios TV subscribers were paying. “We don’t want to charge our customers for content they aren’t watching and receiving,” she said. “Whether that is going to be in the form of a refund or discontinued billing, we are looking at all of those options right now.” However, Verizon does not feel it can unilaterally give rebates to subscribers. ”We need the broad- casters and R.S.N.s, and the leagues, to cooperate with that ap- proach,” McPherson said, refer- ring to regional sports networks. In at least being willing to dis- cuss whether subscribers are cur- rently getting what they pay for, McPherson is alone. AT&T, Com-

cast, Charter Communications and Dish Network — the four larg- est pay TV providers in the United States — all declined to make ex- ecutives available for interviews or answer questions about what subscribers should expect. Television distributors have historically felt they held little leverage in negotiations with sports networks. What networks pay sports leagues goes up each year. Sports networks raise prices as a result and pass large price in- creases on to distributors, who pass them on to subscribers. One way distributors have pushed back — and tried to deflect subscriber wrath — is by listing

the costs for sports as a separate line item in bills, often terming it a regional sports fee. It is purpose- fully made to look like the actual fees and taxes imposed by state or federal regulators, but it is not the same. The model of regional sports networks, which has been so prof- itable for two decades, is showing signs of strain. The satellite television provider Dish Network has not carried 16 Fox Sports regional networks for the last nine months. A new Chicago sports network is having trouble finding distribu- tion. Comcast has been sued by a Colorado regional sports network. In other words, the balance of

the sports television ecosystem was already being disrupted be- fore the coronavirus pandemic shut down sports. “Now imagine you have pulled out the last piece of the Jenga puzzle, which is that sports are no longer on the air,” Moffett said. “The whole founda- tion, the linchpin that was keeping it together, is gone, and the Jenga tower collapses.” The first sign of that collapse in America comes from DAZN, a sports streaming service that mostly shows boxing and baseball highlights in the United States but is a major rights holder in some other countries. DAZN has told some leagues it will defer payments for suspended or canceled competitions, according to two people familiar with the negotiations. Because it doesn’t receive payments from distributors as traditional television networks do, DAZN is attempting to conserve its cash. “DAZN is a pure sport play — when sports stops, so do many parts of our business,” Simon Denyer, the chief executive of DAZN, wrote on Tuesday in an email to employees, announcing furloughs. The news was first re- ported by Sports Business Jour- nal. Regional sports networks, along with teams and leagues, face the biggest threat from a pro- longed shutdown of live action, according to Moody’s Investors Service. If consumers balk at keeping subscriptions to sports networks, it “may affect affiliate fees unless their networks are part of the basic tier of pay TV,” wrote Moody’s in a recent re- search comment. That is little help to television subscribers like Sanz. She said she had bought a Roku and was considering completely abandoning cable in favor of streaming. She has also called other companies that provide the services she subscribes to, just to see if they would offer any dis- counts. When she reached Adobe, which charges her $39.99 a month for its Creative Cloud suite, she was given three free months. A small reprieve, maybe, but signifi- cant. “It does matter at this point, when there is no income coming into the house,” she said.

Cable Subscribers’ Demand: What Are We Paying For, Anyway?

An Xfinity bill, above, from March for a TV, internet and telephone package. Verizon Fios bills, top, place a regional sports network fee alongside taxes and other regulatory fees.

From First Sports Page

SPORTS MEDIA

TRANSACTIONS

FOOTBALL N.F.L. CHICAGO BEARS — Signed LB Barkevious Mingo to a one-year contract. Re-signed LB Isaiah Irving to a one-year contract. DETROIT LIONS — Agreed to terms with CB Darryl Roberts. LAS VEGAS RAIDERS — Signed Damarious Randall to a one-year contract. SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS — Signed WR Travis Benjamin and OL Tom Compton to one-year contracts. TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS — Re-signed QB Blaine Gabbert.

BASEBALL Frontier League GATEWAY GRIZZLIES — Signed LHP Josh Norwood. SUSSEX COUNTY MINERS — Signed LHP Joe Baran.

COLLEGE FORDHAM — Announced the retirement of AD Dave Roach effective June 30.

THIS DATE IN SPORTS APRIL 4 1911 - Automobile maker Hugh Chalmers introduces the concept of a Most Valuable Player in major league baseball. Chalmers announces that he will award a new car to the player in each league who is selected MVP by a vote of baseball writers. 1937 - Byron Nelson wins the Masters by two strokes over Ralph Guldahl. 1938 - Henry Picard beats Ralph Guldahl and Harry Cooper by two shots to capture the Masters. 1983 - Lorenzo Charles scores on a dunk after Derek Whittenburg’s 35- foot desperation shot falls short to give North Carolina State a 54-52 triumph over Houston in the NCAA championship. 1986 - Edmonton’s Wayne Gretzky breaks his N.H.L. single-season points record with three assists to increase his total to 214. He scored 212 points in 1981-82. 1987 - New York’s Denis Potvin, the highest-scoring defenseman in N.H.L. history, gets his 1,000th point. 1988 - Danny Manning scores 31 points and grabs 18 rebounds to power Kansas to its second NCAA championship with an 83-79 victory over Oklahoma. 1993 - Sheryl Swoopes shatters the women’s championship game record by scoring 47 points to lead Texas Tech to an 84-82 victory over Ohio State. 1993 - Mario Andretti, 53, wins the Valvoline 200 in Phoenix to become the oldest driver to win an IndyCar race and first to win a race in four different decades. 1994 - Arkansas wins its first men’s national championship with a 76-72 victory over Duke, depriving the Blue Devils of a third title in four years. 1998 - Mark McGwire ties Willie Mays’ NL record by hitting a home run in each of his first four games. McGwire launches a towering three-run shot in the sixth inning of an 8-6 victory over the San Diego 2001 - Hideo Nomo becomes the fourth pitcher in major league history to throw a no-hitter in both leagues in Boston’s 3-0 victory over Baltimore. Nomo joins Cy Young, Jim Bunning and Nolan Ryan as the only pitchers to accomplish the feat. 2003 - Toronto’s Lenny Wilkens sets the N.B.A. record for most career losses when the Raptors fall to the Spurs 124-

Wilkens, in his 30th year as an N.B.A.
coach, was already the winningest coach
in league history with 1,292 victories.
2003 - Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs
becomes the 18th player to hit 500 career
homers, connecting for a solo shot in a
10-9 loss to Cincinnati.
2005 - Dmitri Young becomes the third
player to hit three homers on opening
day to lead Detroit over the Kansas City
Royals 11-2.
2005 - North Carolina defeats Illinois to
win the NCAA Division I men’s basketball
championship. Sean May has 26 points
and the Tar Heels don’t allow a basket
over the final 2 1/2 minutes to defeat
Illinois 75-70.
2010 - Yani Tseng wins the Kraft Nabisco
Championship for her second major title.
Tseng holds off Suzann Pettersen by one
stroke.
2011 - Kemba Walker scores 16 points and
Alex Oriakhi has 11 points, 11 rebounds
and four blocks to lead UConn to a 53-41
win over Butler in the NCAA championship
game. UConn coach Jim Calhoun wins his
third national championship, something
only four other coaches have done.

BASKETBALL

N.B.A. LEADERS THROUGH MARCH 12 Scoring G FG FT PTS AVG Harden, HOU ....61 603 619 2096 34.4 Beal, WAS ......57 593 385 1741 30.5 Antetokounmpo, MIL 57 623 361 1690 29.6 Young, ATL .....60 546 481 1778 29.6 Lillard, POR .....58 531 389 1677 28.9 Doncic, DAL ....54 512 369 1549 28.7 Westbrook, HOU. 53 568 269 1456 27.5 Leonard, LAC.... 51 476 311 1370 26.9 Davis, LAL...... 55 508 386 1467 26.7 Booker, PHX ....62 544 405 1619 26.1 James, LAL .....60 586 239 1544 25.7 LaVine, CHI .....60 539 268 1530 25.5 Ingram, NOP ....56 469 283 1358 24.3 Mitchell, UTA ....63 560 249 1525 24.2 Siakam, TOR ....53 459 220 1253 23.6 Tatum, BOS..... 59 499 225 1390 23.6 McCollum, POR.. 62 549 123 1395 22.5 DeRozan, SAS... 61 503 338 1352 22.2 Walker, BOS ....50 350 195 1060 21.2 Middleton, MIL... 55 424 178 1159 21.1 Sexton, CLE ....65 513 226 1349 20.8 Dinwiddie, BKN.. 64 424 347 1318 20.6 Brown, BOS ....50 378 159 1022 20.4 Fox, SAC ......45 329 215 920 20.4 Bogdanovic, UTA. 63 418 250 1275 20.2 Butler, MIA .....54 328 408 1093 20.2 Jokic, DEN .....65 512 218 1313 20.2 Hield, SAC .....64 456 112 1268 19.8 Lowry, TOR .....52 309 255 1026 19.7 Holiday, NOP ....55 421 119 1076 19.6 FG Percentage FG FGA PCT Robinson, NYK .......253 341 .742 Gobert, UTA ........353 506 .698 Allen, BKN ..........267 413 .646 Capela, HOU ........244 388 .629 Clarke, MEM ........254 408 .623 Whiteside, POR ......418 676 .618 Adams, OKC ........262 443 .591 Valanciunas, MEM .....385 657 .586 Simmons, PHI .......361 617 .585 Collins, ATL .........353 605 .583 Harrell, LAC .........471 812 .58 Adebayo, MIA .......408 719 .567 Wood, DET .........288 508 .567 Ayton, PHX .........255 465 .548 Antetokounmpo, MIL... 623 1139 .547 Sabonis, IND ........458 848 .54 Drummond, DET ......360 679 .53 Warren, IND .........460 869 .529 Jokic, DEN .........512 969 .528 DeRozan, SAS .......503 956 .526 Zeller, CHA .........251 479 .524 Ibaka, TOR .........323 623 .518 Thompson, CLE ......288 562 .512 Davis, LAL ..........508 994 .511 Towns, MIN .........316 622 .508 Anunoby, TOR .......267 527 .507 Hayward, BOS .......305 607 .502 Powell, TOR .........259 516 .502 Curry, DAL .........266 532 .5 Middleton, MIL .......424 850 .499 3-PT FG Percentage 3FG 3FGA PCT Hill, MIL ............73 152 .48 Curry, DAL .........136 300 .453 Redick, NOP ........156 345 .452 Robinson, MIA .......243 543 .448 McDermott, IND ......118 265 .445 Morris, NYK .........116 264 .439 Olynyk, MIA ..........80 185 .432 Bertans, WAS ........200 472 .424 Bjelica, SAC ........125 295 .424 Holiday, IND ........122 288 .424 Middleton, MIL .......133 318 .418 Niang, UTA ..........77 185 .416 Korver, MIL ..........86 207 .415 Bogdanovic, UTA .....189 457 .414 Thomas, WAS ........78 189 .413 Harris, BKN .........152 369 .412 Towns, MIN .........114 277 .412 Gallinari, OKC .......165 403 .409 Hardaway, DAL ......185 455 .407 Rozier, CHA .........172 423 .407 Fournier, ORL ........165 406 .406 Mykhailiuk, DET ......115 285 .404 Snell, DET ..........102 254 .402 Grant, DEN ..........88 220 .4 Robinson, GSW .......68 170 .4 Galloway, DET .......132 331 .399 George, LAC ........133 333 .399 Kennard, DET ........73 183 .399 Ibaka, TOR ..........66 166 .398 Powell, TOR ..........94 236 .398

The New York Times. April 04, 2020

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