Golf Channel To Honor African-American Players

Golf Channel in February will take a look at the contributions of African-Americans to the sport with an original documentary, Uneven Fairways.

The documentary, premiering Feb. 11 as part of the network’s nod to Black History Month, attempts to bring to light the little-known but rich history of African-Americans in golf through rare archival footage and interviews, according to network executives.

Additional vignettes from Uneven Fairways—produced in partnership with Moxie Pictures and based on the books Uneven Lies by Pete McDaniel and Forbidden Fairways by Calvin H. Sinnette—will appear on the network’s Web site, as well as on demand and on the channel throughout February.

Uneven Fairways will be one of the most compelling programs we will air in 2009,” said Golf Channel president Page Thompson in a statement. “These are inspiring stories of golfers who overcame great odds just to create a tour where they could compete. It’s a fascinating and important story, and we are all proud to tell it on Golf Channel.”

R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.