After news broke last year that NBCUniversal would be spinning off most of its cable assets in 2025, questions emerged about the future of Golf Channel.

Golf Channel is the only sport-specific network tied up in NBC’s future SpinCo, which is set to become official later this year. Otherwise, USA carries a substantial number of Premier League matches and NASCAR races, and CNBC airs some smaller sports leagues, but SpinCo won’t be swimming in live sports rights.

The impending spin off has fueled speculation that Golf Channel would be ripe for a sale, especially considering that the PGA Tour just launched its brand new state-of-the-art studio complex. But according to Josh Carpenter of Sports Business Journal, such a sale is unlikely to happen at this time.

Speaking to Sports Business Journal, SpinCo’s incoming CEO Mark Lazarus said there “have not been any discussions about the PGA Tour, or anyone else for that matter, buying Golf Channel.” This would support Lazarus’ messaging to employees that SpinCo will be “predator, not prey,” in the current media landscape. It’s widely speculated that SpinCo will be active in acquiring other cable assets from outside the NBC umbrella.

As for Golf Channel, the network currently has rights deals in place with both the PGA Tour and LPGA that go through 2030. Per Carpenter, the network and NBC have not yet determined exactly who will pay the PGA Tour its rights fees after Golf Channel leaves the mothership. However, that seems to simply be a matter of accounting. Carpenter’s report indicates that Golf Channel and NBC will continue to be collaborative even after the separation.

Specifically, Golf Channel talent will continue to crossover on NBC programming, though exact details of those arrangements (like new contracts) are not yet finalized. “We’re not going to hurt one business for the betterment of another,” Lazarus told SBJ. “If Rich works on both, or [Steve] Sands, or whoever, we’ll be able to do a deal where they can do that. There’s lots of talent around the media industry that does that.”

The network’s separation from NBC is also opening the doors for new opportunities. After moving Golf Channel’s production from Orlando to NBC Sports’ Stamford, Connecticut studios a few years ago, a move back to Florida may be in order — but this time at the PGA Tour’s new studios in Ponte Vedra Beach.

“We have to figure out what we’re allowed to do in terms of production in terms of staying within the NBC Sports facility or not,” Lazarus said. “An option would be for us to work there [in Florida], but there are options up here, too. We’ve not had any serious discussions on that, but to be candid, [the PGA Tour] did say if you need space, we have some.”

The PGA Tour is currently leveraging its new studios to begin producing World Feed options for events beginning with The Players Championship this March. The goal is to cater broadcasts to the market the feed is airing in “so that Korea can watch Korean golfers’ every shot and Japan can watch Japanese golfers’ every shot,” PGA Tour senior vice president of media Luis Goicouria told SBJ.

No doubt, the world of televised golf is changing rapidly. For Golf Channel, operating outside of NBC may provide a level of autonomy and nimbleness they couldn’t have had prior. And PGA Tour Studios seems to have launched at an advantageous time for the Tour as it looks to expand its content offerings, perhaps even collaborating with the freshly spun-off Golf Channel in the near future.

Yet, there is still plenty of uncertainty surrounding these arrangements. How exactly will NBC and Golf Channel’s relationship hold up from a financial perspective when millions of dollars in rights fees come due to the PGA Tour? Will talent be able to flow between the networks as smoothly as is currently envisioned, or will there be some friction?

Given the long history between NBC and Golf Channel, it’s hard to imagine anything catastrophic happening. But these are certainly sticking points that will need to be figured out in the year ahead as SpinCo prepares for takeoff.