For months, golf media circles have been whispering the same question: Is Full Swing dead? On Thursday morning, a former Golf Channel reporter answered it, accidentally. Cara Banks posted an Instagram story on December 18, 2025. The overlay text read, “So happy to be joining the @netflix @fullswingnetflix team for season 4! Can’t wait for you all to see it.” Within hours, Sports Business Journal reporter Josh Carpenter amplified the post on X.

“Though Netflix still has not confirmed Season 4 of Full Swing, @CaraBanksNBC does over on Instagram by saying she’ll be part of the show,” Carpenter wrote. The post garnered 4,731 views by Thursday morning. More importantly, it confirmed what industry insiders had suspected since October. Netflix’s golf docuseries wasn’t canceled. It was quietly moving forward, without any official announcement.

Carpenter’s post linked back to his October 6 report for Sports Business Journal. That report had already revealed key details. Box to Box Films, the production company behind the series, listed Season 4 as “in production” on its official website. Cameras had wrapped filming at the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black. Yet Netflix remained silent.

The silence wasn’t accidental. It was strategic.

Season 3 premiered on February 25, 2025. The numbers told a sobering story. Netflix’s first-half 2025 report showed 4.1 million views and 22.2 million hours watched. Compare that to Season 2’s 4.8 million views and 28.5 million hours. Season 1 had accumulated 53.1 million hours between February and June 2023 alone. The trajectory was clear. Viewership was declining. So Netflix recalibrated rather than abandoned the franchise.

Sources told Sports Business Journal that Season 4 would contain just six episodes. Seasons 1 and 2 had eight. Season 3 had seven. The reduction signals a tighter, more focused approach. Fewer episodes. Higher stakes per hour.

But the episode count isn’t the real story. The Ryder Cup is.

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Netflix’s Full Swing bets big on Ryder Cup drama

Netflix cameras embedded at Bethpage Black captured one of golf’s most dramatic team competitions. The U.S. versus Europe rivalry delivers built-in narrative tension. It doesn’t require manufactured drama or behind-the-scenes access negotiations with reluctant players. The event itself provides the stakes.

This marks a shift for Full Swing. Previous seasons relied heavily on individual player storylines. Scottie Scheffler‘s arrest. Bryson DeChambeau‘s redemption arc. Rory McIlroy‘s emotional struggles. The docuseries revealed golfers’ personal lives and humanized the sport dramatically when it launched in February 2023. But that approach depends on player cooperation as not every star wants cameras in their living room.

The Ryder Cup sidesteps that problem. The drama is institutional, not personal. With filming already wrapped at Bethpage, Netflix has its narrative backbone secured. Additional themes may include the PGA Tour’s leadership transition under new CEO Brian Rolapp. Whether LIV Golf players appear in Season 4 remains unclear.

Banks’ involvement adds another layer. The NBC Sports reporter brings broadcast credibility to the production. Her exact role remains unspecified. But her willingness to announce participation before Netflix suggests the streaming giant’s PR timeline no longer controls the narrative.

If Season 4 follows the release pattern of previous seasons, viewers can expect episodes in February or March 2026. Netflix hasn’t confirmed a date. At this point, they haven’t confirmed anything.

The SBJ report. The Box to Box Films listing. The Ryder Cup footage. And now, a single Instagram story that said what Netflix wouldn’t. Full Swing isn’t dead. It’s just waiting for its next tee time.