Fri, July 11, 2025
The Open to employ Spidercam on 18th green at Portrush
For the first time in golf history, The Open will utilise Spidercam technology, and it will be used on the 18th green at the Royal Portrush Golf Club in Northern Ireland.
The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St Andrews (R&A) is the organiser of The Open. It has installed a Spidercam above the 18th green at Portrush for the event which commences on 17 July 2025 – 20 July 2025. A Spidercam is a cable-suspended camera system. It uses cables and motorized winches to move a camera in three dimensions above a designated area allowing for dynamic and unique camera angels. The 18th green at Portrush is a par-4 hole and the closing hole of the course. The Spidercam will also capture the champion walking the final hole at The Open.
Golf has already made use of technology such as plane cameras, aerial drones, bunker cameras and Toptracer, but the Spidercam appears to be a big step up.
Some players have raised concerns about potentially becoming distracted by the moving camera. Additionally, some have highlighted that the camera may be too intrusive whilst the players are under immense pressure, but no official complaints have been made so far, according to The Guardian.
Football, rugby and cricket have already been using Spidercam technology for years, and now the R&A has committed to spending £300,000 for the week at Portrush. The R&A’s broadcaster partners such as Sky Sports and NBC will showcase the highly detailed and unprecedented footage captured by the Spidercam. Naturally, both partners are thrilled by the introduction of the technology. However, due to the high cost, the Spidercam is unlikely to feature regularly in golf.
The head of R&A’s broadcasting and media rights, Paul Sutcliffe, stated: “It’s not often The Open is the first to do something, as usually innovations are made by the Tours before being introduced by the Majors, so this is really exciting. Portrush is one of the few venues without a clubhouse on the 18th green so that gave us a unique opportunity.”
He continued: “With more space around the green we have been able to install technology. There will be some wires around the green, but the camera will retract to the grandstand before each player’s second shot so we’re confident there will be no interference…
2019 was one of the iconic Opens with the emotion of Shane Lowry winning at Portrush, and Spidercam will enable viewers to walk with the 2025 champion up the 18th. It’s the greatest walk in golf and should be very special.”
Chief Commercial Officer at the R&A, Neil Armit, voiced: “We have worked closely with European Tour Productions to invest in cutting-edge broadcast technology and believe that Spidercam will bring millions of fans a new perspective of the action with incredible detail and accessibility wherever they are in the world.
Chief Content and Revenue Officer at the European Tour Group, Richard Bunn, expressed: “European Tour Productions has a shared vision with the R&A to use the latest technologies to create a truly immersive experience for the millions of fans watching the global broadcast. With new innovations such as Spidercam being rolled out this year, The 153rd Open will get fans closer to the action than ever before.”
The Open’s full statement on its use of the Spidercam can be found here.
