Michelle Wie Joins Golf Channel as Solheim Cup Guest Analyst

Five-Time Solheim Cup Veteran to Provide Analysis for GOLF Channel’s Solheim Cup Wraparound News Coverage on Golf Central Friday-Sunday

ORLANDO, Fla. (Sept. 11, 2019) – Major champion and five-time Solheim Cup veteran Michelle Wie will join GOLF Channel’s broadcast team as a studio analyst for the network’s Solheim Cup news coverage on Golf Central, Friday-Sunday, Sept. 13-15, following live competition each day. Wie will make her debut on Friday’s Golf Centralat 1:30 p.m. ET following Solheim Cup Day 1 live coverage. 

“I’m excited to join the GOLF Channel crew to give my views and inputs on a great event that means so much to me,” said Wie.

Wie also is scheduled to contribute to GOLF Channel’s digital and social media platforms on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, including GOLF Channel Instagram story takeovers and other behind-the-scenes content. Joining Wie in-studio as an analyst for Golf Central will be GOLF Channel analyst and former LPGA Tour professional Paige Mackenzie.

Wie has competed on five consecutive U.S. Solheim Cup teams (2009-2017). Earlier this summer, she announced she was taking the remainder of the year off from competitive golf to recover from injuries and wrist surgery. 

GOLF Channel will air nearly 30 hours of live coverage of the Solheim Cup matches Friday-Sunday, from the first tee shot to the final putt, taking place at the historic PGA Centenary Course at Gleneagles in Scotland. The United States currently holds the Solheim Cup, having successfully defended in Des Moines, Iowa in 2017. 

TOURNAMENT BROADCAST TEAM: GOLF Channel’s tournament coverage of the Solheim Cup will be led by play-by-play host Terry Gannon and two-time U.S. Solheim Cup team captain Judy Rankin. Grant Boone and two-time European Solheim Cup team member Karen Stupples will rotate with Gannon and Rankin in the booth during the three days of coverage. Tom Abbott will serve as a hole announcer, with Kay Cockerill, Jerry Foltz, Jim Gallagher, Jr. and Stupples following the U.S. and European teams on the ground as course reporters. Lisa Cornwell will conduct interviews in addition to reporting on-site for Golf Central. 

DIGITAL AND SOCIAL MEDIA COVERAGE: GOLF Channel Digital is providing expanded editorial coverage during Solheim Cup week, with senior writer Randall Mell and staff writer Brentley Romine reporting on-site. GOLF Channel will cover the Solheim Cup throughout the week on network’s social media platforms – Twitter,Facebook and Instagram, with Wie contributing to its platforms Friday-Sunday. 

All three days of Solheim Cup match play coverage will be streamed live via GOLF Channel Digital, NBCSports.com as well as via the GOLF Channel and NBC Sports apps. In addition, news and complementary coverage surrounding the Solheim Cup, including the opening and closing ceremonies, also will be streamed live.

NBC SPORTS GROUP TO IMPLEMENT POPULAR “PLAYING THROUGH” ENCHANCED COMMERCIAL BREAKS: Making its debut on NBC at the Ryder Cup in 2016, GOLF Channel will implement the popular “Playing Through” enhancement in an effort to elevate the viewing experience of the Solheim Cup. NBC Sports Group is partnering with several national advertisers to present select “Playing Through” commercial breaks which will employ a split-screen model that will display both the commercial with audio as well as a continuous feed of the Solheim Cup action.

GOLF Channel Solheim Cup Week Programming (all times Eastern)

The United States defeated Europe 16.5 – 11.5 at the 2017 Solheim Cup in Des Moines, Iowa, the U.S. team’s largest margin of victory since 1996. The win also was the second straight for U.S. captain Juli Inkster, tying Judy Rankin as the only women for either side to lead two victorious Solheim Cup teams.