# Frank Chirkinian

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Television producer (1926–2011)

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**Frank Chirkinian** (June 3, 1926 – March 4, 2011)[1] was an American television sports producer and director. He is most notable for his work on [golf](/source/Golf) coverage though he also directed coverage of the [Winter Olympics](/source/Winter_Olympics), the [United States Open Tennis Championships](/source/US_Open_(tennis)), [college](/source/College_football) and [professional American football](/source/American_football), [auto racing](/source/Auto_racing), and the [Triple Crown of Thoroughbred Racing](/source/Triple_Crown_of_Thoroughbred_Racing).[2]

## Early life

Chirkinian was born in [Philadelphia, Pennsylvania](/source/Philadelphia%2C_Pennsylvania).[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*] He was of Armenian descent.

## Career

Chirkinian was known as the "father of televised golf" for the impact he had on golf broadcasting.[2] He came to the attention of [CBS](/source/CBS) after he impressed with his direction of the 1958 [PGA Championship](/source/PGA_Championship).[2] Recruited by the network, who had no one with expertise in the relatively new field of golf broadcasting, he went on to be executive producer of CBS's golf coverage from 1959 until 1996.[3][4] During his time at CBS, he was nicknamed "The Ayatollah" for his brusque, uncompromising approach to directing broadcasts.[5] Chirkinian was particularly well regarded for the coverage of the [Masters Tournament](/source/Masters_Tournament) that he oversaw for four decades, working closely with the authorities at [Augusta National](/source/Augusta_National_Golf_Club) to ensure they were satisfied.[6]

Chirkinian was responsible for a number of innovations in the filming and presentation of golf. He made sure that as many microphones as possible were placed around the golf course to pick up the sounds of the tournament and golfers' conversations, rather than having commentators talk over silent footage.[1] He showed as many golf shots as possible, cutting quickly from player to player to keep up the pace of the broadcast, unafraid of focusing on the game's stars.[1][4] The use of multiple cameras was introduced during Chirkinian's tenure, including high-angle cameras mounted in trees and on [blimps](/source/Blimp) for the first time.[4]

Chirkinian said that he was most proud of being the first to display golfers' scores relative to par, rather than cumulatively, making it simpler to work out how they were faring relative to the rest of the field.[1] Most of all, Chirkinian thought it important to allow coverage to focus on golfers and the shots they made, and was critical of recent innovations[*[example needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:AUDIENCE)*] in golf broadcasting that he saw as distracting and unnecessary.[1][2]

## Death and legacy

He died at his Florida home after suffering from [lung cancer](/source/Lung_cancer).[1]

Shortly before his death, Chirkinian was elected to the [World Golf Hall of Fame](/source/World_Golf_Hall_of_Fame); he was inducted posthumously.[7] At the induction ceremony, a message Chirkinian videotaped shortly before his death was broadcast to the assembled golfing luminaries.[7]

## In popular culture

- Chirkinian appeared as himself in the [Kevin Costner](/source/Kevin_Costner) film *[Tin Cup](/source/Tin_Cup)*.[*[citation needed](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed)*]

## Awards and honors

- Chirkinian won four [Emmy Awards](/source/Emmy_Award) during his career.[4]

- He also won two [Peabody Awards](/source/Peabody_Award).[4]

- In 2007, Chirkinian was awarded the [Sports Lifetime Achievement Award](/source/Sports_Lifetime_Achievement_Award) and inducted into the Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame.[8]

- In 2011, he was elected and inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame.[1][9]

## References

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-PGAobituary_1-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-PGAobituary_1-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-PGAobituary_1-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-PGAobituary_1-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-PGAobituary_1-4) [***f***](#cite_ref-PGAobituary_1-5) [***g***](#cite_ref-PGAobituary_1-6) Dolch, Craig (February 10, 2011). ["Chirkinian's impact on televised golf can't be overstated"](http://www.pgatour.com/news/2011/02/10/dolch-column-chirkinian.html). [PGA Tour](/source/PGA_Tour). Retrieved March 4, 2011.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-NYT_2-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-NYT_2-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-NYT_2-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-NYT_2-3) Goldstein, Richard (March 5, 2011). ["Frank Chirkinian, 84, Father of Televised Golf"](https://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/06/sports/golf/06chirkinian.html). *[The New York Times](/source/The_New_York_Times)*. Retrieved March 5, 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-CBS_3-0)** Steve Elling (March 4, 2011). ["Father of golf broadcasting dies at 84"](http://www.cbssports.com/mcc/blogs/entry/6267041/27755460). *CBS Sports*. Retrieved March 5, 2011.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Chronicle_4-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Chronicle_4-1) [***c***](#cite_ref-Chronicle_4-2) [***d***](#cite_ref-Chronicle_4-3) [***e***](#cite_ref-Chronicle_4-4) Boyette, John (March 4, 2011). ["Masters Tournament golf broadcasting pioneer dies"](http://chronicle.augusta.com/sports/golf/2011-03-04/golf-broadcasting-pioneer-dies?v=1299331642). *[The Augusta Chronicle](/source/The_Augusta_Chronicle)*. Retrieved March 5, 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-GolfDigest_5-0)** Yocom, Guy (September 2003). ["My Shot: Frank Chirkinian"](http://www.golfdigest.com/magazine/myshot_gd0309?currentPage=1). *[Golf Digest](/source/Golf_Digest)*. Retrieved March 5, 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-GolfObserver_6-0)** Johnson, Sal (March 5, 2011). ["Story of the day for March 5th, remembering Frank Chirkinian"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110711113027/http://www.golfobserver.com/blog/blognews/buzz/2011/03/05/storyoftheday). *GolfObserver.com*. Archived from [the original](http://www.golfobserver.com/blog/blognews/buzz/2011/03/05/storyoftheday) on July 11, 2011. Retrieved March 5, 2011.

1. ^ [***a***](#cite_ref-Induction_7-0) [***b***](#cite_ref-Induction_7-1) ["Els, five others complete journey into Hall of Fame"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110513230243/http://www.pgatour.com/2011/r/05/09/halloffame-ceremony/index.html). [PGA Tour](/source/PGA_Tour). May 9, 2011. Archived from [the original](http://www.pgatour.com/2011/r/05/09/halloffame-ceremony/index.html) on May 13, 2011. Retrieved May 10, 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-SBHOF_8-0)** ["Frank Chirkinian"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110107023648/http://www.sportsvideo.org/portal/hof/articles/publish/Frank_Chirkinian.shtml). *Sports Broadcasting Hall of Fame*. Sports Video Group. Archived from [the original](http://www.sportsvideo.org/portal/hof/articles/publish/Frank_Chirkinian.shtml) on January 7, 2011. Retrieved March 4, 2011.

1. **[^](#cite_ref-WGHOF_9-0)** ["TV pioneer Chirkinian inducted into World Golf Hall of Fame"](https://web.archive.org/web/20110214141456/http://www.pgatour.com/2011/r/02/10/chirkinian-wghof/index.html). [PGA Tour](/source/PGA_Tour). February 10, 2011. Archived from [the original](http://www.pgatour.com/2011/r/02/10/chirkinian-wghof/index.html) on February 14, 2011. Retrieved March 4, 2011.

## External links

- [Frank Chirkinian](http://www.worldgolfhalloffame.org/frank-chirkinian/) at the [World Golf Hall of Fame](/source/World_Golf_Hall_of_Fame)

v t e PGA Tour on CBS The Masters 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 PGA Championship 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Presidents Cup 1994 1996 1998 Other events Farmers Insurance Open Waste Management Phoenix Open (except in the CBS Super Bowl year of 2021) AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Genesis Open The Honda Classic (in the Winter Olympic year 2022) RBC Heritage Valero Texas Open Zurich Classic of New Orleans WGC Match Play Wells Fargo Championship HP Byron Nelson Championship Crowne Plaza Invitational at Colonial Memorial Tournament FedEx St. Jude Classic AT&T National Greenbrier Classic John Deere Classic RBC Canadian Open WGC Invitational Wyndham Championship The Northern Trust LPGA events Kraft Nabisco Championship LPGA Championship Ginn Open (2006-2008) Walmart NW Arkansas Championship Key figures Frank Chirkinian Major championships Masters Tournament PGA Championship Related articles Television contract history PGA Tour on television Golf on USA Network (former early round Masters coverage) Golf on ESPN (current early round Masters and PGA Championship coverage)

v t e Sports Lifetime Achievement Award Jim McKay (1989) Lindsey Nelson (1990) Curt Gowdy (1991) Chris Schenkel (1992) Pat Summerall (1993) Howard Cosell (1994) Vin Scully (1995) Frank Gifford (1996) Jim Simpson (1997) Keith Jackson (1998) Jack Buck (1999) Dick Enberg (2000) Herb Granath (2001) Roone Arledge (2002) Ed Sabol and Steve Sabol (2003) Chet Simmons (2004) Bud Greenspan (2005) Don Ohlmeyer (2006) Frank Chirkinian (2007) Dick Ebersol (2008) John Madden (2009) Al Michaels (2010) Jack Whitaker (2011) Not awarded (2012) Ted Turner (2013) George Bodenheimer (2014) Verne Lundquist (2015) Brent Musburger (2016) Barry Frank (2017) Not awarded (2018) Dick Vitale (2019) Not awarded (2020) Lesley Visser (2021) Bryant Gumbel (2022) James Brown (2023) David Hill (2024)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Frank Chirkinian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Chirkinian) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frank_Chirkinian?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.