Sports

Examining the trajectory of F1’s rise in the United States, it’s impossible to ignore the influence of Netflix, whose documentary series Drive to Survive has proved both a platform for F1’s repositioning and the streaming service’s own creation of a new genre: sports drama. That series opened avenues for Netflix to explore golf, which has been undergoing its own image transformation, with Full Swing. So when rumblings first began last June that executives at the company were toying with the idea of launching a golf-meets-F1 live sports event, it felt like a natural progression.For starters, the made-for-TV golf match has been popping off the last few years with formats like The Match. Then you have the fact many of F1’s celebrity drivers have already been making their affinity for golf wel...

Examining the trajectory of F1’s rise in the United States, it’s impossible to ignore the influence of Netflix, whose documentary series Drive to Survive has proved both a platform for F1’s repositioning and the streaming service’s own creation of a new genre: sports drama. That series opened avenues for Netflix to explore golf, which has been undergoing its own image transformation, with Full Swing. So when rumblings first began last June that executives at the company were toying with the idea of launching a golf-meets-F1 live sports event, it felt like a natural progression.For starters, the made-for-TV golf match has been popping off the last few years with formats like The Match. Then you have the fact many of F1’s celebrity drivers have already been making their affinity for golf wel...