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Published on:

23rd Nov 2024

Ryan Ballengee - Founder of GNN TV

Ryan Ballengee joins JT on Grilling at the Green to discuss the launch of GNN TV, a 24/7 streaming channel dedicated to golf that aims to fill a gap in recreational golf content. They delve into the challenges of transitioning from traditional cable to streaming services, addressing the learning curve many potential viewers face. Ryan shares insights into the programming strategy for GNN TV, focusing on a mix of original content, live competitions, and the importance of highlighting recreational golf. The conversation also touches on recent changes in the PGA Tour's policies to enhance player experience and improve pace of play, reflecting a shift in focus towards showcasing top players. Throughout the discussion, both emphasize the significance of storytelling in golf, highlighting how GNN TV aims to connect with casual golfers and create engaging narratives within the sport.

Takeaways:

  • Ryan Ballengee discusses the launch of GNN TV, a 24/7 streaming channel focused on golf.
  • The show emphasizes the importance of recreational golfers, offering diverse programming beyond professional events.
  • Ryan shares his journey of overcoming skepticism from the industry and building partnerships.
  • The PGA Tour is adapting its player field sizes to enhance competition and viewership.
  • GNN TV aims to highlight stories and experiences of golfers at all levels.
  • The importance of educating audiences on streaming platforms is crucial for GNN TV's success.

Links referenced in this episode:

Companies mentioned in this episode:

  • Golf News Net
  • GNN TV
  • Roku
  • Amazon Fire
  • Apple TV
  • Pluto TV
  • Westin dealerships
  • Weston Kia
  • Painted Hills Natural Beef
  • Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission


This podcast uses the following third-party services for analysis:

OP3 - https://op3.dev/privacy
Transcript
Jeff Tracy:

It's time for Grilling at the Green.

Jeff Tracy:

Join Jeff Tracy as he explores the golfing lifestyle and tries to keep it in the short grass for the hackers, do sweepers and turf spankers.

Jeff Tracy:

Here's Jeff.

Ryan Ballingy:

Just open up the door and look at good times.

JT:

Hey everybody, I'm JT and welcome to Grilling at the Green here on a multitude of radio stations and our biggest platform out there, the Golf News Net Radio Network.

JT:

Thank you for being with us today.

JT:

How, how's your golf game?

JT:

Well if it's like mine, probably not so sharp right now, but we'll work on that later.

JT:

Want to welcome my good friend and co business conspirator Ryan Ballingy from Golf News Net today.

JT:

Ryan's been kind of doing some subtle announcements out there and I thought I would help him along with this because it I'm a very self serving person as you know talking about Golf News Net television and some other things in the golf world.

JT:

Ryan, welcome.

Ryan Ballingy:

Hey Jeff, how are you?

JT:

I'm good, I'm good.

JT:

Well, I think I'm good, I guess.

JT:

I don't know.

JT:

Don't ask my wife though.

JT:

So let's jump in here right at the start.

JT:

You've been conspiring in the back rooms of the television world for a while now and you just launched GNN tv.

JT:

Tell the listeners about that if they don't already know.

Ryan Ballingy:

Yeah.

Ryan Ballingy:

GNN TV is a 24.7streaming linear channel dedicated to the game of golf.

Ryan Ballingy:

So it's available currently on a couple of different streaming services, free live sports and freecast.

Ryan Ballingy:

dozen in the first quarter of:

Ryan Ballingy:

And then as we speak we're releasing the GNN apps for Roku and Amazon Fire.

Ryan Ballingy:

So you'll be able to watch that 24.7channel live through those apps as well as all of our programming on demand.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then hopefully just a couple weeks after that we're going to do an update to our app for Apple TV where you'll be able to do the same thing, watch that 24.7stream, but also be able to watch all of our programming on demand.

Ryan Ballingy:

Grilling of the Green, the video series is part of the channel, which we're very, very excited about.

Ryan Ballingy:

Then we have a bunch of original programming and then tournaments coming competitions coming between the Putt Tour between Golf Zone Tour, Elite Amateur Series events, collegiate events, some events from professional tours abroad.

Ryan Ballingy:

We'll have a great mix for everybody.

Ryan Ballingy:

Whether you love to Play the game or whether you are a professional golf fan or both.

JT:

Oh, cool.

JT:

Well, I'm very, very proud to be part of that.

JT:

You know, if you don't know, folks, grilling at the green.

JT:

Television is part food and part golf.

JT:

And Ryan's been kind enough to go along with my somewhat off the wall ideas at times, but I think there's a place for that in our golf world.

JT:

And I also think everything Ryan just spoke of, there's a big place for that because not knocking Golf Channel, but there's a lot more that happens in the world of golf other than just large tour events and, you know, some collegiate stuff like that.

JT:

I think Ryan's opened the door here for a lot of programming.

JT:

How tough was it when you came up with this idea and you went, I think I'll do this.

JT:

And you've had plenty of experience doing things like this.

JT:

But walk us through the journey because did you get up one day and look at your wife and say, I think I'm going to start a television network?

Ryan Ballingy:

Not quite.

Ryan Ballingy:

But I had this idea in mind for a while.

Ryan Ballingy:

We've had apps for Roku and Amazon Fire and Apple TV for a couple of years now.

Ryan Ballingy:

And it just never made enough original content to really warrant anything more than that, really.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I still had this idea in my brain of starting it's called a free ad supported TV channel.

Ryan Ballingy:

That's what our channel is, free and there's ads, but it's a streaming TV channel.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I went to someone, I kind of put out a little APV on LinkedIn of just seeking help.

Ryan Ballingy:

I mean, I know enough to know that I don't know much.

Ryan Ballingy:

So I want to go talk to a few folks.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I had a call that I'll admit was a total wet blanket.

Ryan Ballingy:

And it was a wet blanket because I realized I couldn't make enough content by myself to make this happen.

Ryan Ballingy:

And it was such a wet blanket that it made me upset, made me angry.

Ryan Ballingy:

And the quickest way to get me to do anything is to tell me I can't do it.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then I said, okay, well, if I can't do it by myself, I need partners and I need help.

Ryan Ballingy:

And started seeking out people who knew the streaming side of things, the streaming world.

Ryan Ballingy:

That's how I found my business partner, Scott Ryan, and tviq, and then started reaching out to people that I've had relationships with in golf, thanks to golf for five, 10, 20 years.

Ryan Ballingy:

And a good number of those folks have produced content for television, whether they're doing it Currently, or they.

Ryan Ballingy:

They would like to, or they had recently and started making the pitch, hey, we can.

Ryan Ballingy:

We can give some of your older programming additional life.

Ryan Ballingy:

We could take some of your current programming and give it more distribution.

Ryan Ballingy:

We can take some of the ideas that maybe wouldn't fit on a regional sports network or elsewhere and put it to an audience of people who are golf diehards.

Ryan Ballingy:

And that turned into a lot of yeses.

Ryan Ballingy:

I think a lot of people saw what I saw, that there was a vacuum there.

Ryan Ballingy:

Nothing against Golf Channel, they're incredible.

Ryan Ballingy:

But their programming mixes is almost entirely competitive professional golf, because that's what they pay for.

Ryan Ballingy:

And so that's what they're going to have.

JT:

Sure.

Ryan Ballingy:

And so there's.

Ryan Ballingy:

I saw, and I think the people who have been positive about the concept, there haven't been too many negatives, have said, you know, they're way more recreational golfers, people are interested in golf, even at a casual level, than there are people who watch professional golf week to week by a factor of like 10, 12.

Ryan Ballingy:

And so if we can talk to those people and we can talk to those people where they are, then we can do something really cool and different.

Ryan Ballingy:

And that's kind of been the last 16, 17 months of going from that initial conversation to proving that there is an audience for these types of things and then going and finding the allies that you need to make it happen.

JT:

Yeah, absolutely.

JT:

I'll tell you a quick story.

JT:

Years ago, when I got my idea for my first TV production, this was back in the 90s, and I talked to a guy that produced for H was hgtv.

JT:

Yeah.

JT:

And so I got him on the phone and I was talking to him and he stopped me and he said, there is no room in television today for a program like yours.

JT:

Now, mine was a food show because that's what I do mainly.

JT:

Right.

JT:

And I.

JT:

And I like you, I was really deflated.

JT:

And then, you know, five, six years later, there was a million food shows on tv.

JT:

And I always kind of wonder what happened to that guy.

JT:

So, you know, they can.

JT:

It's.

JT:

It's such a personal thing when you're seeking out advice and, you know, potential enthusiasm for an idea you have.

JT:

And somebody throws a.

JT:

As you put it, a wet blanket on you, it can tick you off.

JT:

And it does make you dig in your heels.

JT:

And sure enough, you know, it was only a couple years later that I put my first show out there.

JT:

So I empathize with you, my friend.

Ryan Ballingy:

I think that there has to be a certain audacity to do these types of things, you have to also be somewhat delusional in thinking that your idea is so much better or original or creative than anybody else's, that it absolutely has to be seen by the world or heard by the world or whatever for the medium.

Ryan Ballingy:

So there's a key element of kind of being off base perhaps, or at least being able to see something that doesn't exist.

JT:

Right.

Ryan Ballingy:

That's not a ghost.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I, fortunately, if you convince enough people that your idea is relevant and valid, then it starts to kind of steamroll and gain momentum.

Ryan Ballingy:

And what I have found in all kinds of conversations that I've had in the last year and a half is that the more people you can show are on board with your idea, the more easy is to convince the next person and the next person and the next person.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then all of a sudden it has a force to it that is even greater than you, you ever could have imagined.

Ryan Ballingy:

And it kind of starts to take over for itself.

Ryan Ballingy:

We're not there quite yet, but it's getting there.

Ryan Ballingy:

And that's, that's the most exciting part, is to not be the only one who thinks your idea is actually a pretty decent one.

JT:

I'll, I'll say amen to that.

JT:

In a multitude of ways.

JT:

I'll say amen to that.

JT:

We're going to take a quick break.

JT:

We're going to be back with Ryan Balanchi, the proprietor of Golf News Net Radio and Gulf News Net tv, along with the Gulf News Net website, et cetera, et cetera.

JT:

The list is long and we'll be talking about a lot of those things when we come back.

JT:

Stay with us.

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JT:

Welcome back to Brilliant Green on JT Today.

JT:

We've got Ryan Ballingy with us.

JT:

Ryan, of course, is the guy who came up with the idea of GNN tv.

JT:

That's Golf News Network tv.

JT:

I've been working with Ryan now for, I don't know, four years or something, five years.

JT:

And he's been on the show right when I started the show.

JT:

He came on a few times.

JT:

And so this show, grilling at the Green is part of the lineup now on the new GNN tv.

JT:

You were talking about people's ideas and stuff is the, is the tough part, Ryan, explaining to people especially, I'm going to put it this way, people that have a little more age and wisdom on them that it's a streaming, not a, you know, terrestrial type situation, because they expect you.

JT:

When, like when I tell people, I said, well, it's going to be on Roku or Hulu or Free or whatever.

JT:

And they, and they're like, well, what channel?

JT:

And then you say Golf News Net tv.

JT:

To me, there's a bit of a separation there that sometimes people that they're not used to doing streaming stuff can't get their, their head wrapped around it.

Ryan Ballingy:

Yeah, I think there's definitely a learning curve for some people that is to be expected.

Ryan Ballingy:

I think there's something like a hundred million people in the United States who use a fast channel once a month or something similar, whether that's Netflix or Pluto TV or Roku stick, you name it.

Ryan Ballingy:

So the good news is probably about a third of the country uses these things every month.

Ryan Ballingy:

The bad news is two thirds stole.

Ryan Ballingy:

So having to explain that to people and the people that have never used it, that's part of the challenge here.

Ryan Ballingy:

And part of it is trying to get on as many of these streaming services as we can so that people can find us.

Ryan Ballingy:

So if they are using them, they'll know we exist.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then our job, if we're doing it right, is we can use our own platform, those apps for Apple TV and Roku and Amazon Fire and eventually Samsung and Android and others.

Ryan Ballingy:

And we could say, you can find us in the most convenient place that you, we can get you to have a Roku tv.

Ryan Ballingy:

And so many TVS have Roku as their operating system.

Ryan Ballingy:

We can make it real easy, do these three things and you can watch our channel.

Ryan Ballingy:

And once we kind of get past that education component, then that's going to be extremely helpful.

Ryan Ballingy:

But also the out of home distribution stuff that we're going to do is going to be great not only for a business model perspective, but also marketing.

Ryan Ballingy:

People can go into a pro shop or a clubhouse, see Golf News Net TV and go, what the hell is that?

Ryan Ballingy:

And then they'll maybe they'll do a Google search or they'll ask the bartender or their pro, what is that?

Ryan Ballingy:

Oh, well, that's this.

Ryan Ballingy:

And here's how you can find it.

Ryan Ballingy:

And that's, that's how that starts.

Ryan Ballingy:

So it's as much marketing and education as it is going to find the programming and doing the technical side, there's a, there is a lot that goes into it, but there's also a lot of energy behind it.

Ryan Ballingy:

So it's kind of easy to do that work.

JT:

Yeah, I found that.

JT:

Well, here at our house we cut the cable cord, if you will, several years ago and we stream everything and we have for quite a while.

JT:

And I know some of our friends, like if they're, for whatever reason they're here and we're, you know, after dinner or something or watching TV together and they, they're like, well, how do you get all those, you know, do you subscribe to all of them or what?

JT:

And so had to explain it to them.

JT:

And a lot of them have actually switched to streaming only because it's, I think it really broadens what's available to people.

JT:

But that's just my view on, on tv how when you're all said and done, what's the, what's your kind of overview of the type of content?

JT:

I mean you talked about the different, different options now and some of the stuff coming in.

JT:

But if we have this conversation a year from now, Ryan, what would the lineup look like in your best case scenario?

Ryan Ballingy:

Well, it's kind of three buckets of programming, one bucket being stuff that's already on TV or has been on TV or was made for tv.

Ryan Ballingy:

And there are a lot of really high quality shows that are made that appear on regional sports networks around the country.

Ryan Ballingy:

And those are cable networks that are starting to kind of go by the wayside because they have been impacted by fewer people having cable and sports leagues moving their teams off of cable packages and into streaming or over the air network tv.

Ryan Ballingy:

And a lot of these folks have been making good shows, good evergreen golf content, often regionally focused for 5, 10, 20 years.

Ryan Ballingy:

And now they see the reality of the future, but also the opportunity to kind of balance out whatever's happening with the sunset of cable with an opportunity to reach additional audiences with a big back library of programming.

Ryan Ballingy:

So those were easy conversations and we're still having those with a bunch of different shows.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then we'll have live talk programming that'll simulcast on GNN radio during the weekdays which will allow us to offer more programming both not only for the TV side but also on the radio side that transforms two year old golf newsnet radio and give it something a little bit of a fresh coat of paint, which is great.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then we hope to have some form of competitive golf on our channel in prime time 150 to 200 days of the year.

Ryan Ballingy:

And if we can do that, we're going to deliver for people a variety of golf competitions that aren't just 72 holes, stroke play or metal play that should be compelling, should be interesting for people who love the game at a competitive level.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then that will all allow us to meet people where they are and how they love golf.

Ryan Ballingy:

And if we're doing that right, then a year from now our conversation will be about what platforms we still have left or as this space evolves really quickly, that we're well positioned for whatever that next stage is.

Ryan Ballingy:

And there will be a next stage because eventually cable companies that are trying to preserve subscription rates or find a new path forward, they're going to turn to channels like ours, ones that were built for the streaming environment but also have a ton of original programming to help offset or offer, offer additional value to their cable customers that maybe don't want to pay $200 a month anymore for 600 channels, 497 of which they've never watched.

JT:

Yeah, absolutely.

JT:

And out of those 497,237 of them are, you know, home shop, home home shopping networks or whatever.

JT:

You know, I always love that about the cable companies.

JT:

Yeah, you've got 375 channels with this and I watched five of them, you know, type thing.

JT:

So anyway, we're going to take another break.

JT:

We're going to be back with Ryan Balanchine from Golf News Network talking about the new GNN tv.

JT:

And then we've got a couple of topics coming up that you might find interesting.

JT:

Stay with us.

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JT:

Welcome back to grilling.

JT:

It's green on JP Today.

JT:

We got Ryan Ballingy with us.

JT:

By the way, I want to thank Painted Hills Natural Beef, Beef the Way Nature Intended, our new sponsor.

JT:

It's not that new right now, but this year, Squares Golf Shoes and also the Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission.

JT:

They've been great in supporting us in the TV version of this show and other stuff I do on tv.

JT:

So it's worked out really well.

JT:

Anyway, we're talking with Ryan Balanchi, as I said, from Golf News Network, and I want to talk to you about.

JT:

A couple of things have happened in golf the last couple of days.

JT:

One, the Tours policy board voted to adapt some changes.

JT:

Their big issue was, of course, slow play.

JT:

And they've cut the numbers on the, on the Tour that the starting numbers, I think it's down to from 156.

JT:

Down to like, what, 130, 120.

JT:

Like that.

JT:

As far as a field in a tournament like that, I think there's a multitude of reasons for that, and I'd like to get your take on it, Ryan, but I also think they're doing it to kind of stop the hemorrhaging of money and trying to keep up a little more with the live people.

JT:

But I want your take.

Ryan Ballingy:

I think it originates from two places.

Ryan Ballingy:

One, yeah, we want to stop our star players from entertaining the idea of taking Saudi money and going to live.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I honestly kind of think that train has stopped.

Ryan Ballingy:

John Rom was the last guy on that train that's out of the station.

Ryan Ballingy:

I could be surprised, but I think that's going to be the case unless, for whatever reason, Saudis and the PGA Tour decide they're going to unmarry and they're gonna not consummate their framework agreement into a permanent agreement, which could happen.

JT:

Yeah.

Ryan Ballingy:

But I also think there is a practical component to this.

Ryan Ballingy:

There are 156 players in a lot of PGA Tour events, particularly through the summer.

Ryan Ballingy:

And frankly, if you were to ask people who attended those tournaments how many of those 156 players they came to see, they'd tell you less than 20.

Ryan Ballingy:

And that means that those extra players who have the opportunity to upset the apple cart, make a top 10 finish, get into another event, earn status.

Ryan Ballingy:

That kind of gnaws away at the value of a Tour card, particularly as a player who's on the fringes of keeping whatever.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I think what they decided was, hey, we have way too many people who have PG who have great PGA Tour status relative to the number of spots that we have, because you've got 125 fully exempt players.

Ryan Ballingy:

You've got players who have finished in the 126 to 150 category who get like 15 or 17 starts.

Ryan Ballingy:

Then you've got to accommodate the 30 players that graduate from the Corn Fairy tour and the five in ties that graduate from Q School and the 10 that graduate from the DP World Tour.

Ryan Ballingy:

And all of a sudden we've got way more than 156 guys that are trying to make a living playing golf, and a number of them just don't have the access that they probably thought they were going to get.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I think the thought here is if we cut those numbers down, then we can guarantee, hey, if you've got a PGA Tour exempt card, you're going to get into all of the regular events.

Ryan Ballingy:

Maybe if things work out, you can play your way into the signature events.

Ryan Ballingy:

If you graduated from the DP World Tour, the Corn Ferry Torque School, guess what?

Ryan Ballingy:

You're going to get into all, almost all of the regular events.

Ryan Ballingy:

You're going to get a fair shake at keeping your card.

Ryan Ballingy:

And if you are a player who frankly just is kind of hanging on and gets into events because you at one time were on the PGA Tour or on the outer fringes of being marginally good on the PGA Tour, we're going to make it harder for you.

Ryan Ballingy:

We're going to force you to the Corn Ferry Tour, we're going to force you to other places to play golf.

Ryan Ballingy:

And we want the PGA Tour to be reserved for the best of the best.

Ryan Ballingy:

And so we're going to have 100 fully exempt players.

Ryan Ballingy:

We're going to have smaller fields because one, our players are slow and two, they want to play against fewer people.

Ryan Ballingy:

And that's how that's going to be the path forward.

JT:

Will it work for them?

Ryan Ballingy:

Probably.

Ryan Ballingy:

I think the overwhelming percentage of golf fans don't know and don't care how many players are in every field.

Ryan Ballingy:

They just want to care about how many top players there are.

Ryan Ballingy:

And if this can help that along and make sure they finish rounds closer to one time, then it's probably a big win for them.

JT:

I also think this my two cents, but from a television perspective, I think it's going to give more camera time, if you will, to players you actually might want to watch.

JT:

If you're at home, when you look at the, you know, the two preliminary rounds of a tournament and they're kind of all over the place, they've got, you know, five or ten players that they focus on most of the time.

JT:

They have some, a lot of name recognition or what have you, but there's also the up and comers that are really good and, you know, they got on there and all of a sudden they've got a couple of top 20s and it's their first year and they're doing well and they're starting to gain recognition.

JT:

But with that many people in the field, especially at the Front end of the tournament, you don't get a lot of, like I said, TV time.

JT:

And I think it will help on that too, to actually kind of broaden the fan base of any given player if they're playing well.

Ryan Ballingy:

I think that's possible too.

Ryan Ballingy:

I.

Ryan Ballingy:

I mean, we've spent this year doing a series with French Lake Resort around the Corn Fairy Tour because they host the Corn Fairy Tour Championship.

JT:

Right.

Ryan Ballingy:

So we spent a lot of time thinking about talking to people related to the Coin Ferry Tour.

Ryan Ballingy:

And it was.

Ryan Ballingy:

I was very excited for Rafa Campos to win in Bermuda because he had just come off the Corner Tour and he had come off being the 30th player.

Ryan Ballingy:

He was the last guy to get a card.

Ryan Ballingy:

And even though he had a PGA Tour card, technically he didn't have one practically because it was really hard for him to get into events throughout the year until he got into the middle part of the year, May, and then through the summer, when a lot of the top players kind of just play a little bit more sporadically.

Ryan Ballingy:

And he had struggled to make cuts.

Ryan Ballingy:

I mean, he basically had missed what, 14 to 15 cuts, wasn't playing well.

Ryan Ballingy:

And he had a chance in the fall to kind of save himself.

Ryan Ballingy:

And for one great week, he did that.

Ryan Ballingy:

He saves himself.

Ryan Ballingy:

That's an awesome, cool story that only happens because of the Quarry Berry Tour.

Ryan Ballingy:

And my hope is that because of this, somehow the PGA Tour will do a better job of promoting that the Corn Ferry Tour exists and is their lead pathway to the PGA Tour, and that they can do the same for the DB World Tour and highlight the breadth and depth of professional golf.

Ryan Ballingy:

That's never been this good, but you need to be able to have spaces for those players to play to be able to tell those stories.

Ryan Ballingy:

So this is hopefully a first step in that regard.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then they fix the television product, the marketing product, the whole channel of how we story tell about golf, because no one can do it as well as they can.

Ryan Ballingy:

They've got the biggest megaphone, they've got the biggest platform to do it.

Ryan Ballingy:

They've got to put the resources to work to make that happen.

JT:

How is it, how's it going to affect sponsor exemptions?

JT:

Because there always seems to be a sponsor exemption in, you know, any tour event, especially the larger ones, the highlighted ones that you always hear kind of behind the scenes, some, a few grumbles here and there, you know, why did they let this guy in and this other player is better?

JT:

Etc, etc.

JT:

Part of that's just human nature and that.

JT:

But I would think that this would perhaps make sponsor exemptions more, what I want to say thought more thought given to them before they just hand one out to somebody.

Ryan Ballingy:

So they're going to scale back about half of the sponsor exemptions to every open tournament because they have a number of, this is really inside baseball, but they have a number of different categories by which they give sponsor exemptions.

Ryan Ballingy:

Some are unrestricted and can be to literally anybody, and some are restricted and limited to players of a certain status.

Ryan Ballingy:

So players who graduated from the DP World Tour Q school, they got their own category of sponsoring.

Ryan Ballingy:

Well, that's going away.

Ryan Ballingy:

So now those are extra spots in the field, oftentimes three players that will now just go to the next available player in the priority list.

Ryan Ballingy:

So instead of having to play a political game and writing letters to tournament directors and hoping they liked your letter the best or that your primary sponsor was a presenting sponsor or some kind of sponsor of that week's event, now it can just kind of go to the player who earned it based on their play.

Ryan Ballingy:

And I think that is a very good thing.

Ryan Ballingy:

On the flip side, having reduced numbers of Monday qualifiers at a lot of events, about half of them and three of them just going away entirely, that's a downside to me.

Ryan Ballingy:

But they're trying to set up a tour where it's less coming down to skill, luck or politicking to get into events and more about your long term performance.

JT:

Yeah, and I think that's, I think that's really relevant because it all ties into what we were talking about, you know, giving the better guys, if you will, a better chance to compete at those events.

JT:

Anyway, we're going to take a break, come back and wrap up the show with Ryan Ballingy.

JT:

Please stay with us.

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JT:

Welcome back to Grilling at the Green.

JT:

I'm JT today we're with Ryan Balanchine from Golf News Network.

JT:

Get back to the other stuff real quick, Ryan.

JT:

People should go to the GNN website to find out more about, well, the radio versions and now the television versions.

JT:

What should they look for there?

Ryan Ballingy:

So head over to golfnewsnet.com and we've got big parts in our navigation for either GNN radio or GNN tv.

Ryan Ballingy:

You click on GNN tv.

Ryan Ballingy:

You can watch GNAT TV live right there.

Ryan Ballingy:

Get information on how to download our apps or which platforms you want to watch us on.

Ryan Ballingy:

Pick your one of choice.

Ryan Ballingy:

We're happy you're watching us any way you watch us.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then you can watch episodes of our original programming On Demand.

Ryan Ballingy:

Right now we're expanding that on practically a daily basis on the website, but the first three episodes of Grilling of the Green TV are available there to watch On Demand.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then on the radio side, if you go over there, you can listen on iheartradio if you're in the United States and in Canada and parts of Australia, or you'll be presented tuned in if you're from other parts of the world.

Ryan Ballingy:

But listen, either way, you'll also get a full list of our schedule as well as all the shows that we have on the channel.

Ryan Ballingy:

And you can listen to them on Demand if you'd like, and find ways to subscribe to them as podcasts if you're so inclined to listen to podcasts.

JT:

Oh, there you go.

JT:

How about that?

JT:

How much time have you had to play golf?

JT:

I know you're on your way to play golf right now, but what you're doing and having some experience with it, I would say the clubs sat in the corner more than they sat on the course this year.

Ryan Ballingy:

Yeah, I probably played the least amount of golf this year since I became a parent almost 12 years ago.

Ryan Ballingy:

It's just the real reality of the situation.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then that's okay.

Ryan Ballingy:

I knew that going into it, that this was going to be a year of a lot of time spent on zoom calls and phone calls and being behind a desk and uploading and downloading and coding and all kinds of things like that.

Ryan Ballingy:

I knew that was the case, but I think that makes me appreciate getting to play the game actually more because now the instances I get to do it kind of like a special treat.

Ryan Ballingy:

It's not just something I get to do in the afternoons, but I can blow off work.

JT:

Yeah.

JT:

How much I wanted to ask you this earlier in the show.

JT:

Did you get any pushback on this?

JT:

I told you a story about hgtv.

JT:

You talked about the wet blanket effect.

JT:

But did you get any pushback from anybody at the higher levels of golf about starting GNN tv?

Ryan Ballingy:

No.

Ryan Ballingy:

I mean, it's actually been really interesting.

Ryan Ballingy:

Pretty much every governing body that I've talked to, and there are a couple I haven't.

Ryan Ballingy:

Or quasi governing bodies.

Ryan Ballingy:

Like I haven't talked to Augusta national about it, but pretty much everyone else sees the value of it, that they recognize that from the prism, we want to show golf, which is around recreational golf and what recreational golfers are interested in.

Ryan Ballingy:

There really isn't an outlet for that right now.

Ryan Ballingy:

So they have been as helpful as they could be.

Ryan Ballingy:

I mean, there's healthy skepticism about anything like this.

Ryan Ballingy:

Like, oh, are you actually going to do this?

Ryan Ballingy:

When are you going to do it?

Ryan Ballingy:

How are you going to get it out there?

Ryan Ballingy:

And that's all totally to be expected.

Ryan Ballingy:

And then as you answer each question along the way with what we're doing and how we're distributing, it makes those conversations easier, and it makes it that much more eager to get involved.

Ryan Ballingy:

So we really haven't had any issues with anyone that's kind of controlling recreational, competitive, professional golf.

Ryan Ballingy:

They want to be involved as much as they can.

Ryan Ballingy:

In some cases, like the PGA Tour, that's, that's not a ton because they get massive rates, fees that they have to work with and satisfy.

Ryan Ballingy:

But right, by and large, it's.

Ryan Ballingy:

It's very encouraging.

JT:

Well, and we might next year, folks from some of the golf shows, I don't mean shows on television or radio, but actually events, do some streaming from a couple of those shows.

JT:

And there's always interesting people to talk to at local or regional, you know, golf merch shows out there.

JT:

Ryan can tell you that more than I can.

JT:

I've only been doing it for, you know, years.

Ryan Ballingy:

But.

JT:

But I think Ryan grew up in this stuff, so that might be a possibility, too.

Ryan Ballingy:

We've talked about golf's a game of stories.

Ryan Ballingy:

I mean, more than anything else, it's stories.

Ryan Ballingy:

It's a common bond.

Ryan Ballingy:

And that's what I think we can illuminate best and give people a place to talk about and experience and engage with.

Ryan Ballingy:

And if I feel very firmly, if we're telling good stories, then we're doing the right thing.

JT:

Oh, absolutely.

JT:

And I like it the way you framed it.

JT:

Golf is stories, good stories.

JT:

We're all storytellers, whether we like to admit it or not, especially on the golf course.

JT:

Ryan Balanchi from Golf News Net.

JT:

Ryan is actually on his way down to South Carolina this morning, but he's going to stick around and we're going to test his knowledge.

JT:

Not about golf, but about Thanksgiving.

JT:

And it's going to be fun.

JT:

So, Ryan, thank you for being on the show.

Ryan Ballingy:

Thanks, Jeff.

Ryan Ballingy:

Appreciate it.

JT:

All right, we're going to, we're going to get out of here.

JT:

And if you can see, if you're watching this video, you can see this.

JT:

That's where I'm going next week, right here behind me to Hawaii and see if I can play a couple rounds of golf back there.

JT:

Long overdue vacation.

JT:

Anyway, thank you for listening.

JT:

We thank all of our sponsors.

JT:

We think Ryan and go out there, play some golf, have some fun.

JT:

But most of all, be kind.

JT:

Take care, everybody.

Jeff Tracy:

Grilling at the green is produced by JTSD Productions, llc in association with Salem Media Group.

Jeff Tracy:

All rights reserve.

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About the Podcast

Grilling At The Green
Podcast by JT
Podcast by JT

About your host

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Jeff Tracy

Radio host and TV personality. Host of BBQ Nation and Grilling at the Green radio shows and podcasts. Known as The Cowboy Cook on TV for over 25 years. Golf fanatic, history buff and family guy. 2 million + miles in the air with a sore backside.