Videos for the Golf Nerd in You

Golf videos abound online. Lessons, tips, bloopers, course tours....the list is endless. Add to that now a series from NBC News' educational arm, NBC Learn, which teamed up with the USGA and Chrvron Corporation to release the “Science of Golf," an informative 10-part video series narrated by NBC Sports’ lead play-by-play anchor Dan Hicks.  The series explores Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) topics through the lens of the game that brings out the nerd in all of us.

The videos were made especially for students and teachers to use in the classroom but are also available to the public cost-free on NBCLearn.com/Golf. In addition, the three organizations announced they are providing the award-winning “NBC Learn K-12” learning resource to more than 500 middle and high schools in 14 districts across the country. The gift grants schools two years’ worth of access to the rich collection of NBC News videos, primary source documents, images, and resources specifically designed for use in the K-12 classroom. Students and teachers will see how the principles of science affect everything about the game—from a player’s golf swing, to the anatomy of a golf ball, the math behind golf scoring, and the evolution of the golf club.

“In partnering with the USGA and NBC Learn we have been able to develop what we think is a truly unique series of videos – taking a peek behind the scenes at the science of golf and hopefully inspiring the next generation of engineers and scientists,” said Glenn Weckerlin, Director, Programs and Partnerships of Chevron. “We have made ‘The science of’ videos as well as the entire portfolio of NBC Learn resources available, to provide innovative content that might not otherwise be available to the schools.”

For each piece of the series, an expert from the USGA scientist explains the selected scientific principle, while the golfers describe how these principles apply to their game. The science is broken down by capturing the golfers’ movements with a state-of-the-art, high-speed Phantom camera, which has the ability to capture movement at rates of up to 10,000 frames per second. These dynamic visuals allow for frame-by-frame illustrations of specific scientific principles such as displacement, buoyancy, kinematics, acceleration and velocity. The National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) will provide lesson plans for teachers that accompany the videos created by NBC Learn.

"We are proud of our collaboration with Chevron and NBC Learn to use golf as a way to bring education to life,” said Sarah Hirshland, the USGA’s Senior Managing Director of Business Affairs. “The new video series showcases the STEM principles that play a key role in a variety of USGA functions, including equipment testing, environmental research, and scoring.  We hope these videos inspire students of all ages, whether they are enjoying the game or learning in the classroom.”

In addition to its subscription resources, NBC Learn also produces original video collections that are made available for free on NBCLearn.com. These include the Emmy Award-winning “Science of NFL Football,” and “Science of the Winter Olympic Games” collections, as well as “Changing Planet” and “Chemistry Now.”

“Building on the innovative ‘Science of Sports’ franchise, we’re thrilled to partner with the USGA and Chevron to expand the series to include golf, as well as create strategic partnerships that enable our award-winning digital learning content to be used free of charge,” said Soraya Gage, General Manager of NBC Learn. “These one-of-a-kind videos have set a new precedent for teaching science in the classroom, by breaking down difficult STEM concepts and illustrating their real-life application through sports.”

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf