Versant Media Group, owner of the Golf Channel and several other cable news stations, agreed to acquire Full Swing, a manufacturer of golf and baseball simulators and training equipment backed by Tiger Woods, for roughly $530 million in cash, subject to customary purchase price adjustments. 

The selling group includes Bruin Capital, the majority owner of Full Swing, and a group of minority investors. North Castle Partners and Topgolf Entertainment Group also held stakes in Full Swing. 

Tiger Woods invested in Full Swing in 2015 and has been an ambassador for the brand since. Other investors and ambassadors of the company include professional golfers Jordan Spieth, Xander Schauffele, Jon Rahm, and Dustin Johnson; NFL players Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen; and NBA player Steph Curry. It was not disclosed whether the athletes or North Castle Partners and Topgolf Entertainment Group sold their stakes as part of the deal. 

Based in Carlsbad, CA, Full Swing sells its simulators, which feature baseball technology for at home and commercial use. The business was founded in 1986 by Floyd Arnold, who sold it to the current management group led by CEO Ryan Dotters in 2015. Private equity firm North Castle Partners became Full Swing’s majority investor in 2017 and sold its controlling interest in the company to Bruin Capital in 2021. 

Full Swing is the Official Licensed Simulator of the PGA Tour and an Official Technology Partner of TGL, the indoor team golf league founded by Woods and Rory McIlroy that completed its second season in March. TGL features virtual holes projected onto a 53-foot-tall high-tech screen at the 1,500-seat SoFi Center in South Florida. 

Versant was spun off from Comcast Corporation into an independent, publicly traded media company. The separation took place in January. 2026. Its properties include MS NOW, CNBC, USA Network, Golf Channel, E!, SYFY, and Oxygen, as well as complementary digital platforms like Fandango, Rotten Tomatoes, GolfNow, and GolfPass. 

Versant said Full Swing “will add an interactive sports platform to Versant’s portfolio, spanning immersive simulation, launch monitors, virtual greens, integrated software, and performance data. Built first in golf and now extending into baseball and other sports, Full Swing supports data-driven practice, play, training, and entertainment across at-home, commercial and professional environments with simulated sports and family entertainment experiences.” 

Full Swing will join Versant’s golf business, supported by Golf Channel, GolfNow and GolfPass, and is expected to provide a “new way to engage the growing golf community.” The acquisition is also designed to “create opportunities for content, commerce, training, venues, and performance data, while supporting Full Swing’s continued growth as a sports technology company.” 

“Full Swing is exactly the kind of strategic platform that reflects how we are building Versant: investing in our core markets, extending the reach of our iconic brands and creating new ways to serve passionate audiences,” said Mark Lazarus, chief executive officer of Versant. “Sports are becoming more interactive, more data-driven and more connected, and Full Swing allows us to build on that momentum. Starting from our strength in golf, we see an opportunity to scale a multi-sports technology platform for athletes, coaches, consumers, and fans.” 

“Full Swing will add a powerful performance layer to Versant, bringing interactive products, precise data and immersive software to players wherever they engage, including at home, on the range, in venues or with coaches,” said Will McIntosh, president, digital platforms and ventures at Versant. “We have long admired what Ryan and his leadership team have built at Full Swing and look forward to welcoming them to the Versant family as we work together to extend the platform’s reach and impact across training, competition and entertainment.” 

“This is an exciting next chapter for Full Swing. Joining Versant gives us the scale and distribution to bring our technology to even more golfers, athletes and fans, while staying focused on what we do best — building the most connected and immersive way to play and train,” said Ryan Dotters, chief executive officer of Full Swing. “We’re proud of what our team has built, and we look forward to growing it alongside Versant’s portfolio of iconic brands.” 

“Joining Versant’s portfolio and resources, under Mark’s vision for the future of sports and fan experiences, is exactly the kind of next chapter we set out for when we acquired Full Swing five years ago,” said George Pyne, Bruin Capital’s founder and chief executive officer. “Its data and technology are a perfect fit for the interactive, athlete-to-fan ecosystem Versant is building. This is truly a win for everyone, and we’re thrilled for Ryan and the team.” 

Following the transaction’s close, Full Swing will operate within Versant’s Digital Platforms and Ventures portfolio, and Dotters will join Versant, reporting to McIntosh. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in the second half of 2026. 

Gibson Dunn acted as legal advisor to Versant. Moelis & Company, LLC acted as financial advisor. Kirkland & Ellis LLP acted as legal counsel to Bruin. 

Image courtesy Full Swing