NBC on Tuesday said its Golf Channel will air 300 hours of Olympic golf coverage from Rio de Janeiro in August - 130 of them live - but several top player no-shows could dampen viewer interest.

For an event returning to the Olympics after more than 100 years, some industry experts are concerned the withdrawal of key names could turn off casual fans who might watch golf for the first time during the Game. In the US, the event will mainly be shown on NBC's Golf Channel.

In the past few weeks, Australia's Adam Scott withdrew, as well as South Africans Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel, drawing criticism from nine-time major winner and South Africa team captain Gary Player, who said "many people have fought tooth and nail" to return golf to the Olympics.