• Mediaweek, Tuesday, February 7, 2006 11 AM

"Golf Magazine is becoming a content company.  We want to be all things golf.  We're trying to deliver quality golf content however and wherever our audience demands it."  So says publisher Chris Wightman, who suddenly finds himself atop an expansive media franchise devoted to one of America's favorite sports.  For Wightman and his cohorts, the world changed dramatically last month when Golf's corporate parent, Time Inc., purchased the Golf.com Web site.  Described by Mediaweek as a "monster-size portal," Golf.com will now attach to both GolfMagazine and a forthcoming spinoff title, Golf Magazine Living. Golf, operated by Time Inc.'s Time4 Media unit, is also developing a TV show for golf fans. Golf.com will operate alongside Golf Mag's existing Golfonline.com site, which mirrors the print publication's content. Golf.com, on the other hand, is an omnibus site, catering to everyone from casual fans to the most obsessive golf nuts who need hour-by-hour updates on what's happening in the greater golfing community.  "Magazine genres of all stripes... are increasingly feeling pressured to extend their reach beyond the printed page to build both profits and brand equity," says Mediaweek.com.  Golf Magazine is but the latest to demonstrate how that's done.

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