How the PGA of America Used Lennd to Deliver a Media Hub for the PGA Championship
About the PGA Championship
One of the golf industry’s most prestigious events, the PGA Championship brings together the world's best golfers every year. As a result, this event brings in media coverage from around the globe. Historically, the on-site media center consists of 250 working press seats, a photographer’s room with an additional 40 seats, a theater-style interview room with seating for up to 200 people, about 20 radio booths, a large scale video and leader board, a media dining area, and more.
The Challenge
With COVID-19 significantly limiting the quantity of on-site personnel, the PGA of America needed a way to easily vet, onboard, and provide approved media members across the globe a way to efficiently and effectively cover the week-long PGA Championship.
PGA of America Objectives
Broaden reach by accommodating remote coverage
Enhance on-site and remote media experience through seamless video conferencing & real-time alerts
Deliver dynamic & exclusive content to aid on-site and remote coverage
Carry out a cost-efficient media operation
Offer centralized resources and tools to allow media to efficiently cover the PGA Championship
Solution
The PGA turned to Lennd to create a Media Hub
Capabilities
The goal of the Media Hub was to be a one-stop shop where it was simple and straightforward for the PGA of America staff to:
Review and react to media applications
Credential approved media for either on-site or virtual access
Enforce and track signatures from anyone on-site for approval of COVID-19 protocols
And to allow media outlets to:
Apply for access
Follow the Live Interview Schedule
Join press conferences
Request interviews with specific players
Watch interview replays
Access transcripts from player interviews
Receive real-time alerts & reminders via email or text
Access a real-time feed of competition replay videos (that is searchable by player)
Access critical PGA Championship resources including Groupings & Tee Times, Practice Round & Driving Range feeds, Player & Media Guides, Hole Locations, PGA Rules Assignments, Fact Sheets, Travel Assets, Logos, Weather, course stats, photos, B-Roll, and more
What they said
A New Paradigm
“Thanks to Lennd, we identified efficiencies beyond our wildest dreams and a new way to do business in the future.”
Julius Mason, Senior Director, Public Awareness & External Relations, PGA of America
A Communications Tool
“This is a communications tool at its core. If you're looking to improve your event communications with whoever your target group is, this is a tool that we certainly saw the value in, and we're excited about how it's gonna help us moving forward.”
Patrick Kravitz, Media Relations Specialist, PGA of America
Media Adoption
“My biggest fear was that there wouldn't be enough buy-in from media, just because it's a brand new tool and we've never used it before. They quickly squashed that fear; they used it immediately and enjoyed it.”
Patrick Kravitz, Media Relations Specialist, PGA of America
Game Changer
“We want to use this moving forward because it's a game changer, not just for media. It's also a game changer for our staff and for those that are invested in the media operation...This is a communications tool at its core.”
Patrick Kravitz, Media Relations Specialist, PGA of America
Customer Centric
“Lennd was the perfect partner to build the Media Hub with us. They are product-minded and customer-experience-driven, just like we challenge ourselves to be. The Lennd team has a wide breadth of event industry knowledge (not just golf) - so that, coupled with their highly collaborative and empathetic approach, gives them a real edge.”
Liz Elliott, Championship Technology Manager, PGA of America
Media Feedback
“It was almost too good. An editor might think we don't need to be on-site seeing how thorough it was.”
Media Outlet, Feedback
Built Specific For The Challenges Of Events
“Building products that support both onsite and/or remote customers can get complex - but we strive to make it feel simple. Lennd bridges a major gap by letting us organize everyone in one place and provide them all with seamless access to what they need, both digitally (login) and physically (printed credentials).”
Liz Elliott, Championship Technology Manager, PGA of America
Potential is Vast
“We could not have partnered with a better group than the team from Lennd. Almost instantly, I knew we were with the right people because they first listened and then asked terrific questions to best grasp what our vision was. From there, they built a portal that was not only user-friendly, but welcoming, for those both on-site and joining us remotely. Its potential is vast. Looking back, our PGA Championship’s media paradigm changed in 2020, for the better.”
John Dever, Director, Public Relations - Championships PGA of America
Results & Stats
The Virtual Media Hub was a one-stop shop where it was simple and straightforward for media to more efficiently cover the event (whether they were on-site or remote).
50 Media Personnel and Photographers On-site
797 Media Hub Users
127 Media Hub Users Added the week of the PGA Championship
102 Scheduled Interviews / Zoom Press Conferences (Most interviews managed at a PGA Championship in the past four years)
167 Player Interview Requests
1157 Video Replays
99 Interview Replays
99 Published Alerts
98 Transcripts
Approximately 50% Cost savings on overall media operations budget from prior year
Photo: On-site members of the PGA team refer to the Media Hub to see what interviews are coming up.