Pro sports teams are getting creative with their schedule releases, and we loved the way the Boston Celtics announced its 2026-2027 slate.
The Celtics coordinated a day with six-time NBA All-Star Jayson Tatum and Ryder Cup captain and huge Boston sports fan Keegan Bradley to shoot content for its big announcement. Why golf? That was an easy answer for Nicole Federico, the senior vice president of marketing and brand for the Celtics.
“It’s been exciting to see how golf has moved into more into mainstream NBA culture over the past five or six years,” Federico said. “So many NBA players, and star players, are publicly playing and practicing and working on their games—and kind of highlighting their love for the game on all of their social media channels.”
Tatum is the Celtics’ biggest star and a huge golfer, who plays to a 15 handicap and has a simulator in his Boston-area house and hosts an annual charity outing in his hometown of St. Louis for his Jayson Tatum Foundation. So Tatum was a natural fit for the content shoot, which took place at Brae Burn Country Club in Newtown, Mass.
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Though rain disrupted the shoot—literally the only day on Bradley’s and Tatum’s summer schedules where they had an open day—the two enjoyed spending time together, with Bradley giving Tatum some pointers, encouraging the 2024 NBA champion to make more of a turn with his backswing.
But what Tatum enjoyed most was picking the brain of the eight-time PGA Tour winner.
“Just talking through his process and how he manages a round at a tournament [was the coolest part],” Tatum said, “as well as getting insight and learning how much downtime golfers have to think and process in between shots.”
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Golf Digest Logo The best golf courses in Massachusetts Tatum isn’t the only golf-obsessed member of the Celtics. Payton Prichard, the former standout at the University of Oregon who averaged 17 points a game last season, has been hosting a charity event of his own the past two years. And Mike Conley Jr., Paul George and Mitchell Robinson, in addition to President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens, are also huge golfers.
Federico, a big golfer herself who played on her high school team, loves how leaning into golf can help grow the Celtics brand beyond basketball.
“It’s really awesome seeing how all of these super elite, premiere athletes are embracing the game,” she said. “They're making it just, you know, they're making it be more accessible to people.
“By a lot of these guys really getting into it, I think it's opening people's minds and eyes to just kind of the accessibility of it.”
As part of the Celtics’ schedule release campaign, the team is hosting a community event with JetBlue on Thursday for middle-school students from Urban Golf Club, a local non-profit aimed at boosting financial literacy, at Five Iron Golf in the Boston Seaport. Students will be surprised by Celtics player Jordan Walsh before taking part in simulator challenges, learning golf fundamentals, participating in a Q&A and competing for prizes.
You can watch the Celtics' video below—which includes a subtle nod to the Masters.
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Golf Digest Logo America's 100 Greatest Public Courses Here are a few beyond the scenes shots that the Celtics shared with us.
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Joe Sullivan
Joe Sullivan
Joe Sullivan
Joe Sullivan