Golf TV producer Frank Chirkinian dies at the age of 84 - Golf news
The hall of fame Golf TV producer, Frank Chirkinian, has died at the age of 84. He passed away at five o’ clock in the morning on Friday at his home in North Palm Beach, Florida after a prolonged battle with lung cancer. Though Chirkinian has produced the
Olympics and a number of other huge sporting events for TV, he will be most remembered for producing golf’s grandest stage of them all, The Maters. He was the producer for this event for 38 years in a row on CBS from 1959 to 1996.
Chirkinian is widely known as the father of televised Golf due to a series of innovations for the live broadcast, programs and coverage of the tournaments. He not only introduced the high angle cameras in trees, blips and cranes but also put microphones
in greens, tee boxes and players with the intention to show the maximum golf in a tournament as possible. He was the first one to list the scores relative to pars in 1960. "I was probably the most innovative and brilliant (person) who ever worked in television,"
he once famously said. "I've done so many things I can't remember half of them."
He was nicknamed “The Ayatollah” by his colleagues and subordinates for his ever growing demand of perfection. Standing at 5 foot 5, Chirkinian was a true titan in his field of sports production for which he won four Emmys. "In his 38 years with CBS Sports,
Frank Chirkinian's remarkable innovations and contributions have become the industry standard for the way we watch golf on television. Frank has left a legacy of excellence and creativity in golf broadcasting that will never be equaled and is a true Hall of
Famer in all of sports television", said Sean McManus, the Chairman of CBS Sports.
Chirkinian will be inducted posthumously in the Hall of Fame on 9th May in St. Augustine, Florida. He was elected into the Hall of Fame on 9th February during an emergency vote. He was elected by the Hall of Fame Board including members
of LPGA, PGA TOUR, European Tour and PGA of America for the lifetime achievement category. Chirkinian applauded the decision as the pinnacle of his career and lifelong dedication to the sport in his last interview.
Chirkinian’s stern professional rapport for televising most watched sports world class events has earned him respect from all the circles of sports. Many are calling his death a casualty for sports in general and Golf particular, but his legacy is far from
fading away. He was a trend setter and a rule maker. Chirkinian’s innovations will be used until another Chirkinian comes forward and redefines the broadcasting rules, a difficult thing to happen. His son rightly announced his death by saying that he squeezed
every drop of life out of his 84 years and that there wasn’t anything left.
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