AT&T/DirecTV will deliver The Masters in 4K HDR for the first time
Augusta National will become the latest golf course to get the live 4K HDR treatment, with AT&T’s DirecTV delivering The 2018 Masters next month in the next-gen format for the first time.
DirecTV will team with CBS Sports, which will once again also handle the primary HD coverage, to produce and deliver live 4K HDR coverage from the storied Amen Corner (Holes 11, 12, 13) and from Holes 15 and 16. In all, DirecTV will offer more than 50 hours of Masters coverage in 4K HDR on Channels 105 and 106.
This year’s Masters is the third to be produced in 4K/UHD, but it will mark DirecTV’s first HDR coverage from Augusta. DirecTV became the first U.S. pay-TV provider to broadcast sports live in 4K HDR in December with a Penguins-Golden Knights NHL Game (simulcast on NHL Network) and then presented golf in live 4K HDR for the first time at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February (also in conjunction with CBS Sports).
4K HDR programming from Augusta National will begin with first- and second-round coverage on Thursday, April 5 and Friday, April 6, featuring live Amen Corner coverage from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET on DirecTV Channel 105 and Holes 15 and 16 from 11 a.m. to 6:45 p.m. on Channel 106. Weekend coverage on Saturday, April 7 and Sunday, April 8 will include Amen Corner coverage from noon to 6 p.m. on Channel 105 and Holes 15 and 16 from 12:45 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Channel 106.
Last year, DirecTV and CBS Sports experimented with adding HDR to its 4K coverage, but the content was visible only in special viewing areas at Augusta.
The Masters marks the latest chapter in AT&T/DirecTV’s ongoing 4K and HDR efforts. Over the past three years, DirecTV has aired more than 740 hours of live 4K and 4K HDR programming, including college football, NCAA basketball, professional golf (2016 and 2017 Masters), NBA, MLB, and the Olympics. The satcaster hosts three fully dedicated 4K TV channels (104, 106, and PPV channel 105) with both live and previously recorded documentaries, concerts, series, and pay-per-view events.