NBC deserved better.

The golf Gods should have conspired to give the network something on the order of another Payne Stewart winning putt or a Tiger-Rocco playoff for its final U.S. Open.

Instead, Johnny Miller and company were subjected to four days of Martin Kaymer, who sucked all the drama out of the tournament with a Tiger-like performance. The show probably played well in Germany, but likely fell flat with American audiences.

NBC did get to tell the remarkable story of Erik Compton, and had the Dreamsicle-clad Ricky Fowler hanging around to make things colorful. But it’s never a good sign when the network calls it over by the 10th hole.

With nearly two hours to fill Sunday, I wondered if producer Tommy Roy would allow his NBC crew to reminisce about their 20 years of covering the U.S. Open. However, true to his word, Roy stuck with the script: The story of the day was tournament, not NBC.

As a result, NBC did an understated, classy farewell to its signature tournament.

Miller looked to make a concerted effort not to get emotional, as he has done on many occasions. Dan Hicks did set him up at the top of the telecast if he wanted to get teary-eyed one last time.

“We all look forward to this day so much and I look forward to this day so much, Johnny, because I get to sit next to you, watch a final round of the United States Open on Father’s Day,” Hicks said. “I know how much it means to you and how emotional this day is since you won back there in 1973 at Oakmont.”

Miller, though, didn’t go reaching for the tissues.

“I’ll try not to go there as far as getting too sentimental,” he said. “I’m so excited to see this last round at this great golf course, Pinehurst No. 2.”

Hicks and Miller also remained composed for the sign-off.

“Well, this is a moment of our careers here in the U.S. Open, Johnny, that we know is coming to an end here, a moment where we didn’t ever want to greet,” Hicks said. “As many of you know this is the final U.S. Open telecast for all of our NBC crew, and I just want to say to you, Johnny, what a privilege it’s been to sit next to you here at a championship that you’ve loved for so many years. It’s been the highlight of my career. I’ve had the best seat in the house with the best analyst who has ever done this game.”

“Twenty years is a lot of fun, but I’ve always believed there’s a time and a season for everything,” Miller said. “Thank the USGA and, of course, NBC for giving me that opportunity. Been a lot of good memories, lot of great champions, a lot of great moments, and I’ve had my share.”

Now it isn’t as if NBC is signing off forever on golf. However, as I have written earlier, this tournament always meant so much to its golf team. They will feel a void when Fox Sports takes over next year.

The same holds true for ESPN. After 33 years, the network ended its coverage of the first two rounds Friday.

Chris Berman did the honors:

“ESPN began broadcasting the U.S. Open back in 1982, first with ABC and then of course starting in ‘95 with NBC. Some of us have covered this event since 1986. Now here we are in 2014, 33 years after it all began, and the proverbial final putt is about to drop. Our live coverage is about to end. And speaking for the hundreds of ladies and gentlemen through the years who worked so hard for three decades, I’ll admit that we’re sad. We’re sad because we love the event and we’re sad because we love bringing it to you. But above all, we are very proud. Collectively, we’re here from before sunup until the time the sun goes down and way beyond but that’s ok – we’ve just been trying to get it right. If somewhere along the line we helped you enjoy the U.S. Open a little bit more, helped you have some fun, made you bigger U.S. Open fans, then all that work was worth it. Frankly, it’s been one of the best rides in the history of this network. Thanks for sharing it all with us.”