The effect of a wide flux distribution on the structure of thin coatings can be significant in sputter deposition. The authors have studied anisotropy in the microstructure of coatings deposited in an industrial tool coater. The observed anisotropy in the microstructure and texture of the film correlates well with the anisotropic nature of the flux distribution of the atoms incident on the growing film. The flux distribution was measured experimentally by placing a "pinhole" in front of the substrate and calculated using a Monte Carlo method. The authors show that the flux distribution is responsible for a splitting of the film texture into two dominant orientations. (c) 2007 American Vacuum Society.