Netflix Introduces Live Golf Event With F1 Drivers and PGA Tour Players

Netflix has unveiled the ultimate crossover episode: A live golf event that features athletes from both “Formula 1: Drive to Survive” and “Full Swing,” two of the streaming service’s hit documentary series. The collaboration will be Netflix’s first ever live sports event.

Four PGA Tour players and four Formula 1 drivers will team up in a match play tournament at Wynn Golf Club in Las Vegas, and the sporting spectacle will stream live on Netflix at 6 p.m. ET on Nov. 14. The event has been dubbed the "Netflix Cup,” and it will take place in advance of the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Rickie Fowler, Max Homa, Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas will represent the PGA Tour. Morikawa and Thomas were featured in the first season of Netflix’s golf series, so if the special event is any indication, is likely that fans will see Fowler and Homa in Season 2. 

Alex Albon (Williams Racing), Pierre Gasly (BWT Alpine F1 Team), Lando Norris (McLaren Racing) and Carlos Sainz (Scuderia Ferrari) will be teeing it up on behalf of F1. “Drive to Survive” is currently filming its sixth season and the show has been a success since its debut in 2019. 

According to a poll conducted by Morning Consult in March 2022, 53% of American F1 fans credit the Netflix series as their entry point to the sport. Similarly, 63% of “Full Swing” viewers reported tuning into a PGA Tour event in the two months following the show’s release, according to a Nielsen Media Research Analysis poll.

Netflix has decided to capitalize on the impact of both series and merge them on an international stage. 

“We love to see how our sports series have brought increased fandom to sports leagues and competitions all over the world,” said Gabe Spitzer, Netflix’s Vice President of Nonfiction Sports. “The Netflix Cup will take that energy to the next level with global stars from two popular hits competing in our first-ever live sports event.”

They might be most comfortable behind the wheel, but the F1 group consists of several avid golfers. Just last month, Sainz teed it up at the 2023 Ryder Cup All-Star Match and Albon’s girlfriend is LPGA player Lily Muni He. Meanwhile, of the four golfers Fowler has the closest connection to the motorsport world. The six-time PGA Tour winner has a background in motocross and grew up alongside some of the best racers in the world in Southern California.