honors – Ultra Golfing

Aircast.Tech, aiming to improve streaming, wins top honors at Tech Lab

admin — Tue, 26 May 2026 13:25:44 +0000

AI is being used creatively by numerous companies, but Aircast.Tech aims to improve fan experiences at golf tournaments and other sporting events.

NEWTOWN SQUARE, Penn. — Startup founders, technology experts and golf industry insiders from around the world gathered in a hospitality tent perched above the 17th tee at Aronimink Golf Club on Tuesday to not only catch a glimpse of the players as they practiced on the long par 3, but also participate in the third-annual Golfweek Tech Lab.

Think of the event as the “Shark Tank” of golf, with small companies from a variety of sectors trying to impress a panel of judges with solutions to challenges that face the world of golf and sports.

As you might expect, two words that were inescapable at the 2026 Golfweek Tech Lab: artificial intelligence.

Golf.AI is using the technology to create agents that can provide personalized answers when golfers call a club or resort. Bantee uses it to not only allow players to share their round on a customized social media platform, but also build customized buddy trips after picking a region, how much golf they want to play and where they want to stay.

After the judges had a chance to see and talk with each company, however, it was Aircast.Tech that emerged as not only the winner in the Media & Digital Solutions category, but also the Grand Prize winner.

Clubhaus won in the Business Solutions category and Groove Golf won in Player Performance. Piing.Events won in Fan Engagement.

Founded by Australian native Craig Horobin, Aircast is tackling a problem that almost every modern sports fan has experienced: live sports that no longer feel truly live.

Whether it’s a text message from a friend spoiling a touchdown before it appears on your screen or trying to stream video from a crowded golf course where the signal constantly buffers, delays have become an accepted frustration of the streaming era. Aircast is attempting to eliminate much of that lag by delivering synchronized video and audio feeds to mobile devices in less than a second, even inside crowded venues.

“It just gives fans added context to what’s going on,” Horobin said. “Not just right in front of them, but on other holes as well.”

For golf, the application is obvious.

Fans standing beside a green or tee could use a tournament’s existing app to instantly switch between featured groups, alternate camera angles, commentary feeds and replays happening elsewhere on the course without dealing with the 30- to 60-second delays that plague most streaming services.

Horobin said Aircast’s technology is designed to work quietly in the background through software embedded into existing apps rather than forcing fans to download yet another platform.

A fire-less, fireside chat at @golfweek Tech Lab at Aronimink Golf Club with Kevin Scott, @PGA CTO Kevin Scott, George PGA Senior Dir. of Enterprise Technology, and Kris Hart Golfweek Senior Dir. of Growth & Ventures. pic.twitter.com/hwvDo1TkFi

— David Dusek (@Golfweek_Dusek) May 12, 2026

“What we want to do is be as frictionless as possible,” Horobin said. “If the PGA integrated our SDK into their app, once a fan got on site, geo-fencing would detect that they’re there and they would be able to access the feeds available over that network.”

The technology also addresses one of the biggest challenges facing live sports venues: overloaded cellular networks.

At large sporting events, even sending a text message or uploading a photo can become difficult once tens of thousands of fans are concentrated in one area. Horobin said Aircast minimizes bandwidth requirements by transmitting feeds in a one-way distribution model rather than relying on the constant back-and-forth data traffic of traditional streaming systems.

“It doesn’t congest or contend the network,” Horobin said. “We section off a small part of the network and make sure people can access those feeds directly from broadcast.”

While golf presents a natural use case because fans are spread across an entire property, Aircast has already gained traction in tennis, another sport where multiple matches happen simultaneously. The company has worked with the Australian Open and is preparing to support other tennis events this summer.

Horobin founded Aircast in 2017 while working in broadcast technology for major international events, including the Olympic Games, FIFA World Cups and Commonwealth Games. What began as a side project became a full-time focus during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the shutdown of live events allowed him and his small team to fully develop the platform.

“There’s been companies in the past that have tried this and not been successful,” Horobin said. “For us, awareness is huge. It’s getting people to realize this is available.”

And if Aircast succeeds, the next evolution of watching sports may not involve choosing between being at home or attending in person.

It could finally deliver the best parts of both experiences at the same time.

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Rick Shiels Names Spoiler Golf OG His “Best Putter of 2025,” Earns Dual Honors in H.I.T. Awards

admin — Sat, 07 Mar 2026 19:02:33 +0000

Cleveland Heights, Ohio — Independent golf equipment testing has put Spoiler Golf firmly on the map. Following hands-on evaluation by Rick Shiels and the H.I.T. Golf team, the Spoiler Golf OG putter was named Best Putter of 2025, with Spoiler Golf also earning Best Value Putter of 2025 honors in the annual H.I.T. Awards—recognition driven by roll performance, visible feedback, and innovation, rather than brand size or marketing spend. The recognition places Spoiler Golf among the top-performing putter brands of 2025 despite being a young, independent company focused exclusively on putter design.

The H.I.T. Awards recognize top-performing golf equipment following independent testing and evaluation by Rick Shiels and the H.I.T. Golf team. The results were announced in a published awards video on the H.I.T. Golf YouTube channel – The Best Putters of The Year – H.I.T Awards.

Rick Shiels is one of the most widely followed voices in golf equipment media, known for independent testing, technical analysis, and transparent reviews trusted by millions of golfers worldwide.

Best Putter 2025 — Spoiler Golf OG

In naming the Spoiler Golf OG as Best Putter 2025, Shiels cited both performance and innovation:

“For me, the best putter of 2025 goes to the Spoiler Golf Silver OG.”

He noted the immediate impression the putter made during testing:

“This putter honestly caught my attention.”
“The roll you get off this is unbelievable.”

Shiels emphasized that the award reflected the broader concept behind the design:

“As an idea, as a concept, as something that really, really blew me away and impressed me this year — this is why I’ve given it Best Putter 2025.”

Looking ahead, he added:

“I believe this technology story is going to catch on. I really do.”

Best Value Putter 2025 — Spoiler Golf

Spoiler Golf also received Best Value Putter 2025, recognizing performance and technology relative to price in a category increasingly dominated by premium-priced equipment.

“The technology and the design of the head is very, very forward-thinking,” said Shiels, noting that Spoiler stood out when evaluated against the broader market.

Spoiler Golf Models

Spoiler OG Mallet
The OG Mallet features Spoiler’s distinctive Lead Edge Roll face design, engineered to promote earlier forward roll and reduce skid. The design delivers pure roll performance and clear feedback that helps golfers diagnose and refine their stroke over time.

Spoiler Riv Blade
The Riv Blade delivers the same pure roll technology in a traditional blade profile, offering precise feedback and consistent roll while maintaining a classic look at address.

“Winning both Best Putter and Best Value Putter just two years after launch is incredibly meaningful,” said Dan Landman, Founder of Spoiler Golf. “This recognition reinforces our belief that pure roll and precision feedback are what help golfers become better putters. We’re blown away and humbled by the recognition.”

About Spoiler Golf

Spoiler Golf is a U.S.-based golf equipment company focused exclusively on putter design and performance. Founded on the principle of truth through precision, Spoiler creates putters that emphasize pure roll performance and visible feedback to help golfers improve through understanding, rather than compensation.

More information is available at https://www.spoilergolf.com

High-resolution product images and additional information are available upon request.

Media Contact:
Dan Landman
Founder, Spoiler Golf
Email: help@spoilergolf.com

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