Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.

ESPN has become gigantic at the US Open, so much so that in the next two weeks, some 800 production people will be working at Flushing Meadows. CBS is gone, ESPN isn’t sharing with the Tennis Channel, so the country’s huge facility has only one TV partner to run it
ESPN and ESPN2 will produce more than 130 hours of television. ESPN has a new technology that is ramping it up.

“I think that we’re throwing as much as we can at it, including countless, countless hours across all the networks,” the broadcaster and former player Patrick McEnroe said. “For us it’s very, very exciting. I thought it was off the charts. I thought, how come we haven’t been able to use it in other tournaments? Of course, the reason, like all other things, is money. So obviously ESPN is pulling out all the stops.”

Patrick’s older brother, John McEnroe, is pleased that ESPN is trying new things, and he knows that tennis is popular, but on air it can be dry at times. Patrick, who is on radio during the year and can talk about every type of sports, says it’s a good idea to mix it up.

“I’m all for trying [new technology],” Patrick said. “I think we need to do more to try to bring the experience of watching on TV better for the fans, the way it is for American football.”

John McEnroe loves to talk, about just about everything, but one thing he doesn’t like is when the players are playing matches and at times, they can hear every sound heard on-court microphones.

“For me personally, I don’t think that [microphones] enhance the experience,” John McEnroe said. “Some things are better left unsaid and there should be some level of protection.”

Copyright © 2015. No duplication is permitted without permission from Bob Larson Tennis.