Every season of the PGA Tour begins with new faces and names that fans can learn about and embrace. There is always something new, whether it’s a rookie just off the Korn Ferry Tour or a college star making waves with a few starts, or a European player trying out for the U.S.-based tour.
The new faces have not only appeared on the course in recent years. New voices have joined the broadcast booths at PGA Tour events. The carousel seems faster and faster these day.
As 2023 begins, NBC’s Gary Koch and Roger Maltbie are gone. They are both long-time broadcasters of golf. Brad Faxon, Smylie Kaufman and Roger Maltbie are their replacements.
Nick Faldo, CBS’s lead analyst, resigned at the conclusion of 2022’s coverage. Trevor Immelman will replace Faldo, a former Masters champion. Immelman, 42, was already a member of the CBS team. Faldo, who is 65 years old, apparently wanted to work a shorter schedule. CBS decided that this didn’t work and Faldo was forced to retire.
As 2023 approaches, the voices are getting younger and it seems like a lot has changed for the main two networks that cover the PGA Tour. The Golf Channel also covers its own PGA Tour tournaments and shares producing and voice at times with CBS and NBC. Is it possible that things have changed so fast in 2018 or is this just the way social media has made them believe?
Remember Johnny Miller? Although it may seem like a distant memory, Miller was a straight-talking analyst at NBC. Miller’s nearly three-decade-long career at NBC ended in 2019. Paul Azinger, a former Ryder Cup captain and PGA champion, took Miller’s place.
This was also the time that CBS announced the departure of Gary McCord (and Peter Kostis) from its golf broadcasts. These were two voices who had been part of CBS for over three decades.
David Feherty wasn’t shy about explaining why he quit NBC/Golf Channel in order to become LIV Golf’s largest broadcaster.
Feherty said to the Toledo Blade that “Money” was his opinion. People don’t talk about this. “People don’t talk about it.”
LIV Golf Invitational Series still has no television partner. But Feherty’s move made the Greg Norman-led and Saudi Arabia-funded upstart circuit known as a name on its broadcast team. His debut was at LIV Beddingster.
The action from the first round at the 2012 Hyundai Tournament Of Champions is discussed by Dan Hicks and Johnny Miller of The Golf Channel. (Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
There are always changes
There have been many other changes. Jim “Bones”, a long-serving caddie for Phil Mickelson became a respected commentator on NBC’s courses before returning to his duties as Justin Thomas’ caddie. John Wood, another veteran tour caddie is receiving rave reviews for his work with NBC.
It might seem like there have been a lot of changes over a relatively short time. It was only 20 years ago that Ken Venturi, the CBS lead analyst, ended his 35-year tenure.
The networks understand that golf must appeal to a younger audience. It’s wonderful that 50-plus people love the sport and are willing to watch it. This demographic also tends have more time and disposable income, which advertisers value. The sport also needs younger fans, who will be there to support the sport and keep up with the new stars for the next 15-20 years, or longer. Younger voices may seem to be the best thing.
It’s not like Maltbie, Koch, McCord or Kostis did a poor job reporting on PGA Tour events. However, it is inevitable that older voices are pushed aside in favor of younger voices. This is true for all media and entertainment.
Faxon is a broadcaster with some experience and has proven he can handle his job. Kaufman was once a rising star on the tour, but his game suffered from a series of missed cuts in his last three seasons. He became a breakout star for Golf Channel and NBC last season. Immelman, who has been an integral part of the CBS team since several years, should be a great fit at Augusta National where he won in 2008.
It will be different to watch golf in 2023, when you won’t hear Faldo, Maltbie, or Koch. Some familiar voices such as Mark Rolfing of NBC or Ian Baker-Finch from CBS are still there, as well as the main anchors for their networks, Dan Hicks and Jim Nantz at CBS.
Is it going to be better? It is likely to be the same. The networks will use technical innovations, but they will still broadcast the PGA Tour event in the traditional way. Sometimes, it’s not the voices that are tired; it’s the broadcast approach that becomes stale.
Golf will be aired on NBC, CBS, and Golf Channel in 2023.
Larry Bohannan, The Desert Sun’s golf writer, is Larry Bohannan. You can contact him at (760) 778-4633 or at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @larry_bohannan. Cameron Jourdan, Golfweek’s editor, contributed to this report.
