Introducing LED Screens to The Open Championship

Our brief was to design, manufacture and install seventeen LED Video Walls for the 2014 Open Championship. Screens required exceptional picture quality in all weathers. In addition, we needed to work within The R&A’s strict sustainability and safety guidelines, to ensure energy efficiency and avoid ambient light pollution when not in use.

Services

Bespoke event installations, Content management, Digital display screens, Event branding, Video walls
Client / Year

The Royal & Ancient Golf Course of St Andrews / 2014 – present day
Lead Time

6 Months

We have worked with The R&A on the Open Championship stage dressing for over 40 years, in 2014 our main challenge, was to produce something new for The Open Championship that looked like it had always been part of the event structure.

This was achieved by housing the screens on steel structures, similar to those of their traditional wayfinding signage, this allowed the design to withstand extreme weather conditions, whilst being sympathetic to the natural environment and providing exceptional picture quality.

The displays installed at The Open are a p10 (6560 x 2720mm 18sqm) to allow for optimum spectator viewing. The outdoor displays are built into IP65 galvanised steel enclosures for maximum protection against the environment of a Links golf course.

Supported by custom software & hardware, the Screens supply a real-time feed of player location, scores, leader board & general information.

Multiple redundancy systems were incorporated into the hardware-software & data network guaranteeing a constant live feed. The displays had high brightness with automatic adjustment preventing sun bleaching and required a high refresh & scan rate preventing lines when exposed to live TV.

Since 2014 LED Video Walls displaying messaging and live action have become an integrated component of the spectator experience.

Photo of the LED leader board screen developed by PPL in 2014 for The Open Championship

Testimonials

LED Scoreboard

“We worked with PPL to design, build and manage our LED Scoreboard walls, as we were confident that we could trust them to combine the many complicated aspects of the job and work within budget. Their solution combined new technology with tradition, and we were delighted with the end result.”

Johnnie Cole-Hamilton, Director of Championships. R&A

Do you have a similiar project we could help you with?

Get in touch