EVENT SPOTLIGHT: THE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

From Monsterboards to ribbon displays, TIPS to tickers, SMT celebrates 25 years at The Players

Thanks to Logan Morris, Project Manager; Coby Douglas, Sr. Broadcast Specialist; and Nick Knepper, Broadcast Specialist III, for contributing to this report. Thanks to Video Editor Shaun Bales for the highlight reel.

Last weekend, SMT delivered a major on-site presence at The Players Championship, supporting the PGA Tour with an expanded suite of display, production and fan engagement services at TPC Sawgrass. Since 2001, SMT has provided video displays and content production for the PGA Tour’s premier event, held in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla.

Throughout the years, SMT has delivered signature services such as its Monsterboard LED video boards at the infamous Island Green 17th hole and hole 18, including video production with live video, scores, stats and player graphics. Other displays include custom tickers and indoor LED displays showcasing real-time scoring and Championship information for fans.

Led this year by Project Manager Logan Morris, the team brought together a wide range of technologies and expertise to enhance both the in-venue experience and operational efficiency across the course.

Expanding the On-Course Experience SMT’s footprint was highlighted by large-scale LED installations at some of the most iconic locations on the course. This included multiple “Monsterboard” displays at the 17th hole, one of the most recognizable in golf, as well as a tee-to-green production setup at the 18th hole. Additional LED displays were deployed throughout the Grove, Welcome Experience, Media Center, and hospitality areas, for a cohesive and dynamic visual environment for fans and partners alike.

New offerings Beyond traditional scoring and video, SMT introduced new custom activations inside the Clubhouse and partner spaces. A custom video board for UHC partners and a Morgan Stanley activation featured an eight-feed LED display paired with a live eagle tracker, bringing a new level of interactivity and storytelling to sponsor experiences.

Full-Scale Production & Technology Support Across the property, SMT supported a wide range of services, including practice range production, PGA TOUR scoreboard production across three TOUR displays, and the Players Enhanced Channel. The team also deployed TIPS kiosks and outdoor screens to improve fan access to real-time information, along with multiple ticker displays powered by partners including AWS and Optum.

Delivering this level of support required a significant operational effort, with 20–35 team members on-site each day. Five key leadership roles—TIPS Lead, ETS Lead, VPS Lead, EDM Tech Lead, and Project Manager—ensured coordination across all areas of execution.

"Special recognition goes to the LED team and the entire staff for their flexibility, professionalism, and ability to effectively navigate unforeseen circumstances," Logan said.

"From a production standpoint, the transformation has been significant," Coby explained. "We’ve gone from more traditional display builds to increasingly complex LED environments, including larger-scale and curved display systems that enhance the overall fan experience. Each year pushes the boundaries a bit further in terms of integration, scale, and creativity."

Broadcast Specialist Nick Knepper agrees. "The Players Championship was one of my very first events as a rookie in 2003. Grunt work, loading and unloading trucks and building video displays during setup. So, it was immensely gratifying to be able to return 20 years later, now as a Graphics Operator for the 18 Tee production. Being able to both witness and be part of the evolution of Jacksonville's premier sporting event brings it all full circle."

Overcoming Challenges During breakdown, the team faced an unexpected logistical hurdle when one of two scheduled cranes became unavailable just an hour before load-out. Despite the setback, the team quickly adapted, reorganized resources, and successfully completed the breakdown of all three Monsterboards in time for next-day LED pickup.

The Grove Wall, which was widened to three panels in 2022, was increased in size and curvature this year. The 12 x 65 feet display's content production showcases a quad mix on the left, the primary video in the center and Morgan Stanley's dedicated content on the right.

SMT services that returned this year to THE PLAYERS included:

• The Welcome Wall, the first display that spectators see as they enter from the parking lot. At 27 by 8 feet, the content on the wall is split into two sections, one side displaying the primary broadcast feed and the other side showing a 4×4 group feed that is part of the Every Shot production from TV.
• SMT’s Spectator Boards kept the 200,000 fans connected to their favorite players via curated posts displayed on 9-by-18 video walls in the Sawgrass Square and Grove locations.
• TIPS (IP Television Platform) around the course and hospitality venues: Devices ranging in size from 32” to 80”, containing 30-plus channels were stationed across the golf course to help fans keep up with live coverage, weather messaging, and other numerous signals generated for specific clients.
• Media Center: The Media Center display, pictured below, uses laptops to display scores, leader boards and live broadcast of play. At the press of the button, the board takes a Full Cover, displaying PGA Tour and PLAYERS logos used as a backdrop for player interviews.

BROADCAST SPOTLIGHT: NCAA MEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

Before the first buzzer sounds or a single bracket is busted, SMT is already in the game

Thanks to SMT Project Coordinator Dan Sichel and Katherine Ryan for contributing to this report and to Shaun Bales for the highlight reel.

Support for the NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament begins on Selection Sunday, where SMT plays a small but critical role behind the scenes of CBS Sports’ bracket reveal. Working from ROOSTER, SMT team members build the official tournament brackets live, entering matchups in real time as they’re announced on air. That data instantly feeds CBS broadcast graphics, powering everything from L-Bar displays to automated bracket visuals seen throughout the tournament.

It’s a high-pressure, high-precision moment that sets the stage for everything to come.

For CBS HQ’s coverage of the bracket reveal, Dan Sichel and Katherine Ryan worked the show, with Kat in ROOSTER and Dan on Teams, both remotely accessing the CBS HQ DMX.

"Because CBS has everything in their NYC broadcast center in lockdown to avoid leaks, we wind up building CBS HQ’s brackets live during the reveal show. We are a very small, specialized part (limited to CBS HQ) of the whole larger operation surrounding March Madness," Dan shared. 

Kat was responsible for setting up the brackets and inputting the matchups into the DMX Bracket Editor. This data feeds CBS HQ’s L-Bar and Automated Xpression bracket graphics (used throughout the tournament). Kat inputted the teams in each bracket as they were revealed live during the selection shows. Once each region was complete, CBS HQ was able to put the L-Bar panels showing the matchups on air.

Dan oversaw the input process and worked with the HQ team to make any adjustments needed on the automated bracket graphics before they were brought to air.

From there, SMT’s footprint expands across the entire tournament. As the exclusive provider of timing, scoring, and data-driven graphics for all 67 televised games, SMT technology is at the heart of the broadcast experience across CBS, Turner Sports, truTV, and TNT, ensuring seamless integration of play-by-play statistics, graphics and video enhancements for broadcasters and viewers alike.

SMT’s SportsCG system captures precise clock and score data directly from each venue, while HoopStat delivers a constant stream of in-game statistics. Together, these systems fuel the tournament’s graphics package and ticker, ensuring fans receive real-time updates and deeper insight into every possession, run, and upset.

Now in its 27th year supporting March Madness, SMT deploys crews to every tournament site across the country. Courtside spotters track key moments—shots, rebounds, assists, steals, turnovers, and fouls—feeding that information to data operators in real time. Those updates help broadcasters tell the story of each game as it unfolds.

Back in Durham, tournament operations kicked off yesterday from SMT’s Institute space, where teams led by Marcus Brown have gathered to support March Madness, with teams monitoring every game simultaneously, keeping a close eye on data accuracy, clock synchronization, and system performance, while ROOSTER serves as the central command center for TGL, PFL, and horse racing.

"Tournament time is always fun, as we will have all games on TVs, monitoring data, supporting via TEAMS and phone calls, and enjoying people all in one spot," Marcus said. "Equal parts control room and watch party!"

GRAPHIC SPOTLIGHT: MISMATCH SPOTTER ON NBA ON PRIME

Mismatch Spotter debuts on NBA on Prime

Thanks to Jackson Jones, Coordinating Producer, for contributing to this report and to Shaun Bales, Video Editor, for the highlight reel.

SMT helped bring a new element of real-time insight to fans during the Amazon NBA Prime Vision doubleheader on March 13, as the PAVE Mismatch Spotter graphic made its on-air debut.

Developed by PAVE, an Amazon subsidiary, the Mismatch Spotter uses advanced algorithms to identify when an offensive player has a matchup advantage over a defender in real time. That data is fed through SMT’s OASIS Hub and into the OPTICS platform, where it’s transformed into a live, virtually rendered graphic on the broadcast.

This marked another step forward in SMT’s first year supporting Amazon’s NBA Prime Vision broadcasts. After establishing a consistent foundation with OPTICS and SportsCG, the team has begun integrating custom elements like Mismatch Spotter to enhance the viewing experience.

The broadcast was supported both on-site and remotely, with Coordinating Producer Jackson Jones acting as show lead; Josh Wimer on OPTICS/SportsCG support; Andy Acosta as Camera Tracker lead; and Casey Piper as Camera Tracker support. Brian Frattini provided OPTICS setup and support remotely.

SMT GAMES: GDC FESTIVAL OF GAMING

From left to right, SMT Games represents Super Tiny Football at the GDC Festival of Gaming: Tyler Summers, Daren Lim, Jason MacRae, Connor Bennette, Jonathan Hirschberg (missing: Evan Zappel and Umaru Jalloh.)

Leveling up at GDC: Fresh ideas, new insights and immediate results

Thanks to Connor Bennette, Technical Producer, SMT Games, for this report. 

Last week, SMT Games staff attended the Game Developers Conference, the largest annual gathering of professional game developers in the world. Held in San Francisco, GDC brings together designers, engineers, artists, producers, and business leaders for a week of informative talks, inspiring conversations, and the opportunity to catch up with old friends and colleagues. The conference floor was packed with vendors showcasing  new services, apps, and emerging technologies. 

"All in all, a productive week that left us with fresh thinking, new connections, and a lot to look forward to as we continue to entertain and grow Super Tiny Football's 100k+ monthly active users," shared Connor Bennette, Technical Producer, SMT Games.

It's always a bonus that the show is local to our Fremont office. Attending from SMT Games were Jason MacRae, VP, SMT Gaming & Digital Development;  Evan Zappel, Lead Technical Creative; Jonathan Hirschberg, Sr. Software Engineer; Tyler Summers,
Sr. Software Engineer; Umaru Jalloh, Sr. 3D Designer; Daren Lim, Sr. QA Engineer; and Connor Bennette, Technical Producer. 
 
Industry & Business The Aussie Mixer, which brought together an interesting mix of developers and industry folks, offered the team a welcome development: Multiple publishers approached this year, a welcome change of pace from the typical pitch-and-chase dynamic. While Super Tiny Football is likely to continue self-publishing, the interest serves as strong validation of the skills and investments SMT Games has been building. 

Talks & Takeaways The team attended excellent sessions on monetization strategy and the state of the industry across PC, console, and mobile — the free-to-play mobile space remains fiercely competitive. 

Standout: Monetization & Cosmetics A highlight was a talk on monetization and cosmetic design, built around a core idea: Don't just sell items, sell the fantasy. Two practical techniques stood out — using Mirrors to expose cosmetics and give players a chance to see themselves in the items, and Stages to create high-attention moments that drive desire. We're actively exploring how to bring both concepts into Super Tiny Football's in-game economy. 

The talk also touched on the broader state of online storefronts. The "Netflix layout" — rows of content with large previews — has become the dominant interface pattern across streaming platforms and digital storefronts alike. A concept worth keeping in mind as we continue to evolve our own presentation. 

Standout: Audio Optimization Talk  The most immediately impactful session was a deep dive on audio optimization, covering different techniques applicable across multiple hardware scenarios. It got us thinking about performance in STF, specifically how we render crowds in the stadium. 

We applied these ideas directly after the conference, and the results speak for themselves: 1 millisecond per frame shaved on high-end devices, and 2–3ms on lower-spec devices. For context, each frame only has around 30ms of budget to work with, so these are meaningful gains. Our stadium crowds now run more efficiently than ever. 

Events and Remote Teams

We are staffing 78 events this week. Safe travels to all!

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