SMT/IDS continues its partnership with the R&A and the
Open Championship this week by providing a host of video presentation services
unique to golf’s oldest major. SMT/IDS – a provider of data integration,
graphics presentation, scoring solutions and on-site services to live sports
and entertainment television – has supported the Open Championship since 2010.
For the 2014 Open Championship, SMT/IDS is providing the
official scoring system, intranet services, web feeds, LED display production
and video editing production. SMT/IDS is providing on-site support with a team
of 11 technicians and administrators.
New SMT/IDS services this year include 17 on-course LED
video boards on holes one through 17 that each display content that is unique
to each hole. The LED presentation includes leaderboards, player statistics and
locators, as well as a produced video highlights. These highlights are also
distributed to the on-site Championship Information Systems intranet (CIS),
TheOpen.com and The Open mobile applications.
Additional enhancements for 2014 include an encoded live
television broadcast feed integrated onto the onsite CIS intranet and onsite
collection of player photographs/head shots for use within various systems.
“We are pleased to expand our services to the Open
Championship,” says Ryan McDonald, SMT/IDS project manager. “Last year, we
demonstrated four LED displays on four holes at the Open at Muirfield, and are
excited to offer a total of 17 on-course displays this year that feature
content customized for the Championship. As our partnership continues to
flourish, we expect to further enrich the fan experience with our innovative
technologies.”