Category Archives: Golf

Tradition unlike any other: Masters telecasts remain wonderfully pristine

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My latest column for the National Sports Journalism Center at Indiana gives thanks to one of the best traditions with the Masters.

To put you in the proper mood, listen to the Masters theme.

From the column:

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Crank up the theme, start thinking of azaleas, and be sure to get the signature line right.

The Masters, a tradition unlike any other.

Despite a certain player not being in the field for the first time in 20 years, CBS still is going ahead with its plans to air the tournament. Indeed, the Masters is and always will be a celebration of golf. And just golf.

That goes to the core of the entire presentation. The telecast also is one of the reasons why we look forward to the Masters every year.

In an age of loud, blaring music, everything being sponsored, and all sorts of other clutter, the Masters remains the most pristine telecast in sports television. Perhaps in all of television.

You won’t hear endless promos for “Two Broke Girls” from Augusta National this week. That replay won’t be brought you by State Farm. They won’t show two shots and then cut to another three-minute block of commercials.

Obviously the technology is light years better, but at its essence, CBS’ coverage of the Masters is the same as it was when Jim McKay was on the call of Arnold Palmer’s victory in 1960. It is an annual reminder that sports TV used to be a much simpler viewing experience.

Say what you will about them, but Augusta National officials, who could collectively buy CBS (remember, Bill Gates is a member), continue to pass up big TV bucks to maintain the purity of the Masters telecasts: Only four minutes of commercials per hour and, blissfully, no network promos.

Naturally, Verne Lundquist is a big fan of the format. Now in his 50th year in the business, he enjoys stepping back into time every April.

“It’s refreshing,” said Lundquist, who will work his 30th Masters this year. “It adds to the quality of the event. You use the word ‘pristine.’ The fact that we don’t do commercials and don’t do promos for what’s coming up on Monday night adds to the pleasure of the telecast.”

 

Nantz on Masters without Tiger: Tournament is about more than one player

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My latest Chicago Tribune column is about CBS’ first Masters without Tiger Woods in 20 years.

You also can access the column via my Twitter feed at @Sherman_Report.

It seems CBS and ESPN are going to air the tournament anyway.

Here is an excerpt from the column in which Jim Nantz finally had enough of the talk about Tiger.

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CBS analyst Nick Faldo predicts this will be the most “wide open” Masters in years, with as many as 30 players having a chance to win. One of them could be a relatively new face such as Jordan Spieth and Patrick Reed from a highly touted class of first-time players at Augusta.

“I think we have something special in this rookie class,” said Jim Nantz, who will call his 29th Masters. “Once the tournament gets started, we’ll have a quick transition from the headlines of Tiger not being here to these young players and the impact they will have on golf.”

Nantz bristled at the barrage of questions about Woods late during a teleconference last week. He noted with some surprise nobody had asked about defending champion Adam Scott or Rory McIlroy, the two favorites to win.

“If Rory wins, I will be the least shocked guy in the world,” Nantz said.

Nantz’s larger point is that there still will be a golf tournament this week even without Woods, and that the Masters always seems to deliver memorable finishes.

“I don’t think the golf fan cares about the ratings,” Nantz said. “I’ve never had anybody say, ‘Tell me about the ratings when Jack Nicklaus won in 1986.’ I never had anyone say, ‘Phil’s victory was great in 2004, but too bad about the rating.’ It was on Easter Sunday that year (which generally means a smaller rating).

“Yeah, we’re going to miss Tiger, but this tournament never has been about one player. It’s going to be thrilling, and I can’t wait to see what the next script is to be written.”

 

 

 

 

 

Not making this up: ESPN, NBC complete trade involving Michelle Beadle, Premier League, Ryder Cup

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NBC and the Golf Channel just announced that it will air all the Ryder Cup matches this September from Scotland. Previously, ESPN had the rights to the Friday matches.

Now this is where it gets complicated. Apparently, it involves some sort of trade between NBC, which owns the Golf Channel, and ESPN. Geoff Shackelford at his site actually broke down the details in January:

As reported here last month, NBC/Golf Channel is acquiring Friday Ryder Cup coverage in return for improved Premier League highlight rights for ESPN’s various highlight shows. Also part of the trade was a talent component, Michelle Beadle is returning to ESPN after a short and unsuccessful stint at NBC Sports Network.

I can report from multiple sources that Beadle was the final piece of the second trade between the networks, the last involving Al Michaels, Friday Ryder Cup coverage and Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

Huh? What? This really happens?

Any other trades in the works? How about NBC gives ESPN the use of Johnny Miller for three days of First Take in exchange for Stephen A. Smith analyzing the Stanley Cup playoffs on NBC Sports Network?

Discuss.

 

Programming alert: In Play with Jimmy Roberts’ now 1-hour; Construction slowly begins on Olympic course in Rio

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Good news for fans for the excellent  In Play with Jimmy Roberts. The Golf Channel has decided make it a one-hour show.

One of the pieces on tonight’s show (10 p.m. ET) looks at designer Gil Hanse and his work on the new Olympics course in Rio.

Here’s the rundown on tonight’s show:

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The game of golf is bigger than what we see each week from the professional tours. Every day, people are doing extraordinary things. In Play with Jimmy Roberts returns tonight at 10PM ET where Roberts will explore the very best stories from every corner of the game.

Tonight Jimmy Roberts will take you on a journey that no one has been on before, a behind the scenes look at the making of the golf course where the golfers will play in the 2016 Rio Olympics. You will get an all-access pass to the blueprints, the groundbreaking ceremony and a golf course in the making.

Plus, six-time NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Champion Jimmie Johnson is most well-known for his accomplishments on the racetrack, but it turns out Johnson has quite the connection to golf. Find out tonight how the game of golf has helped Jimmie become a better driver.

 

Comeback analyst: Peter Kostis returns to CBS telecasts following recovery from colon cancer

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It’s much too early to determine the comeback player of the year in golf, but that’s not the case on the broadcast side.

Great to see Peter Kostis back on CBS’ golf crew for its coverage of the Farmers Insurance Open in San Diego. He had been out since last May after undergoing surgery and treatment for colon cancer.

Kostis had hoped to be back for the PGA Championship in August, but it didn’t work out. Recently, though, he was given a clean bill of health, making him ready to go for 2014.

Kyle Porter at CBSSports.com reports:

So last year when he had surgery for colon cancer on May 21 and the ensuing preventive chemotherapy that would accompany it, well, he didn’t realize how much he had to learn.

“I don’t know that anybody ever knows how good they can be at something or how well they can succeed at something until they face adversity. How you handle it determines who you are,” Kostis said.

Golf is so primarily about trust. Trusting the golf swing, trusting the putting stroke, trusting your yardages, trusting the process. It seemed like such a transferrable lesson for Kostis to apply to his fight against cancer given that it was something his students were always trying to do.

Trust.

“I kind of had always had that mindset, that [having a doctor me tell me I was cancer free] was going to be the conclusion of this process,” Kostis said.

Kostis’ CBS colleagues are thrilled about his return to duty. Yesterday, I asked them about Kostis on a conference call.

“As you know, it’s very tight family out here,” said Jim Nantz. “We do a lot together (on and off the course). Last year, we had a member of our team missing. So we’re happy to have Peter back.”

Besides his on-course analysis, Nantz says Kostis, a noted instructor, is the best in the business in breaking down and explaining a player’s swing.

“I have been over-lessoned in my life,” Nantz said. “Peter has this knack when he sees someone swing once, he can tell you so succinctly what the player did. And he can do it in simple terms. He does it better than anyone ever has. It is a gift.”

 

 

 

 

Chamblee was contrite, but didn’t apologize; Woods needs to be careful with next move

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In case you missed it, Brandel Chamblee addressed his Tiger Woods-cheating column for the first time last night on the Golf Channel.

Chamblee said:

You know, in offering my assessment of Tiger’s year and specifically looking at the incidents in Abu Dhabi, Augusta, Ponte Vedra and Chicago, I said Tiger Woods was cavalier about the rules. I should have stopped right there. In comparing those incidents to my cheating episode in the fourth grade, I went too far. Cheating involves intent. Now I, I know what my intent was on that fourth grade math test. But there’s no way that I could know with one hundred percent certainty what Tiger’s intent was in any of those situations. That was my mistake.

Chamblee also said a few other things. He stressed he doesn’t have a vendetta against Woods. It’s all there in the video.

However, the one thing Chamblee didn’t do was issue an on-air apology to Woods. He previously apologized via Twitter for inciting the debate about whether Woods cheated during several instances in 2013. But even he then, he didn’t apologize for the content of the Golf.com column that stirred everything up in the first place.

Even last night, Chamblee didn’t completely back off his theme. He said, “There’s no way that I could know with one hundred percent certainty what Tiger’s intent was in any of those situations.”

Not 100 percent certain? So Brandel, are you still saying there’s a possibility Woods is guilty of cheating?

This much is certain. The Woods camp is furious, and Wednesday’s on-air session likely didn’t appease them.

It appears as if Woods and agent Mark Steinberg will continue to pursue the matter. They feel they were grossly maligned here by Chamblee. Being labeled a cheater is the worst accusation in golf.

However, there is a public relations risk here. If they go forward, they have to make sure they are perceived as the victim. There is the potential that Woods could be viewed as a bully trying to use his power to extract revenge over Chamblee.

It’s already happening. Gregg Doyel at CBSSports.com wrote earlier in the week:

Tiger Woods plays dirty, but then, we already knew that. And Brandel Chamblee wrote it. And here comes Tiger, confirming it.

By passive-aggressively trying to get Chamblee fired.

This is a bad-guy move Tiger is pulling, trying to use his power and influence — let’s be clear; his power and influence in golf are formidable — to get a TV golf analyst fired for something the TV golf analyst didn’t even say on TV. Chamblee wrote for Golf.com that Woods’ grade for the 2013 season should be an ‘F’ for being “a little cavalier with the rules.”

The next move is up to Woods and Steinberg. And make no mistake, there will be another move.

 

McIlroy defends Tiger on Chamblee flap; Chamblee to discuss situation on Golf Channel tonight

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As I predicted, things are heating up on the Tiger Woods-Brandel Chamblee front.

From Geoff Shackelford:

Earlier today, Rory McIlroy defended Woods’ hardline response against Chamblee. Writes Derek Lawrenson in the Daily Mail:

There was nothing coy, mind, about the way he waded in on the side of his friend Tiger Woods, with strong words of condemnation for Golf Channel commentator Brandel Chamblee, who insinuated in a recent magazine article Tiger was a cheat.

‘I say Brandel was completely wrong and I don’t think he has the authority to say anything bad about Tiger,’ said McIlroy. ‘People wouldn’t know who Brandel was if it wasn’t for Tiger, so I am completely against what he said and he should be dealt with in the right way.’ 

 

Tiger talks about Chamblee: Turns up heat on Golf Channel; Says Chamblee didn’t apologize

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I didn’t think Brandel Chamblee’s tweets last week were going to end of the cheating allegation flap with Tiger Woods.

Sure enough, an angry Woods implied there’s much more to come while speaking today in China, where he had an exhibition match with Rory McIlroy. And he definitely is going to drag the Golf Channel into the saga, even though Chamblee’s column, which alleges he “was a cavalier” with golf’s rules, appeared on Golf.com.

Here’s Woods in an Associated Press story:

“All I am going to say is that I know I am going forward,” Woods said before his exhibition match with Rory McIlroy at Mission Hills. “But then, I don’t know what the Golf Channel is going to do or not. But then that’s up to them. The whole issue has been very disappointing, as he didn’t really apologize and he sort of reignited the whole situation.

“So the ball really is in the court of the Golf Channel and what they are prepared to do.”

Golf Channel has not commented on the flap. Chamblee is an analyst, but he wrote his column about Woods as a contributor to another publication. Chamblee has said he was not asked to apologize by anyone.

Woods’ agent, Mark Steinberg, was so incensed by the column that he issued a statement to ESPN.com that raised the possibility of legal action. Steinberg shared his client’s views.

“I’m all done talking about it, and it’s now in the hands of the Golf Channel,” Steinberg said. “That’s Tiger’s view and that’s mine, and all we want to do is move forward. And whether the Golf Channel moves forward as well, then we’ll have to wait and see.”

So the ball’s in your court, or on your green, Golf Channel.

Golf Channel won’t fire Chamblee. He’s the best analyst it has.

However, I do think the Woods’ camp wants a strong on-air apology from Chamblee at a minimum. They might even insist he wear a dunce cap.

As I said, this story isn’t going away.

 

 

 

Shackelford: Tiger should accept Chamblee’s apology and move on

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At his site, Geoff Shackelford weighs in on my view that Brandel Chamblee should have appeared on Golf Channel to explain his controversial column on Tiger Woods.

Shackelford doesn’t think that would have been a good idea.

There is nothing more obnoxious than the media exploiting itself in these instances. While you can quibble with Chamblee’s questionable decision to roll out the cheating analogy, if you’ve met him or watched him work long enough you know he’s not the limelight hog that many have portrayed him as in this little first golfing world saga. He’s opinionated, paid for his views and generally backs up his positions as well as anyone in sports television.

Then Shackelford adds:

Tiger, meanwhile, has a chance to capitalize on Chamblee’s apology. Traditionally, he would (and will) dig in, exerting behind-the-scenes influence to get revenge. But a wise Tiger would let Chamblee off the hook with a simple “we all make mistakes.” He would end the spat the bigger man, moving the discussion off of the cheating allegation toward an act of forgiveness, shifting focus off his disturbing number of 2013 rules gaffes.

It’ll never happen.

Shackelford is right about that.

I still expect Chamblee to address his column at some point on the Golf Channel.

His post included some interesting comments from readers.

So when a player says something stupid is OK for GC to flesh it out for a week or more, but when Brandlel says something stupid, later stands by his words, then flops and apologizes he should get a pass? And we wonder why some players don’t like the media.

And.

Oh, and Geoff has it right. This is a beautiful, a golden opportunity for Woods to show that he’s magnanimous, easy-going and forgiving. But — true to the form he learned at the knee of master grudge-holder Michael Jordan — he will remain silent, stoic and seething. A small man with a petty outlook on life.

And.

I agree, Geoff. It’ll never happen. Tiger’s s*#t list has a half-life approximately that of carbon-14.

And.

Much ado about nothing…. aren’t all apologies now issued via twitter?

Why did Chamblee tweet apology to Tiger? Why hasn’t he appeared on Golf Channel to address matter?

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Shortly after defending his Golf.com on Tiger Woods and cheating in an Associated Press story yesterday, Brandel Chamblee sent out the following tweets last night.

Why the sudden retreat from Chamblee?

Did the Golf Channel and NBC, which owns the Golf Channel, put pressure on Chamblee to stop throwing gasoline on the fire here? Yesterday’s comments were far more damning than what he wrote in the original piece, where it actually was buried in his season-in-review.

There’s definitely a good chance Chamblee received a series of calls from Golf Channel officials about this matter. The last thing it wants is the No. 1 player in the world boycotting the network. Not a good situation if you’re a channel dedicated to golf.

Also, the Golf Channel likely heard from the PGA Tour about this matter. Having your top player accused of being a cheater isn’t good for business or the game. Considering the network’s heavy menu of tournaments and relationship with the highly-image conscious Tour, yet another reason to try to put out this fire before it becomes an inferno.

It is curious to note that Chamblee has not appeared on the Golf Channel to address his comments and the fallout. It definitely is the biggest golf story of the week. Chamblee works for the Golf Channel. Why not put him on the air to address the matter?

I can’t believe Golf Channel thinks this is just going to go away. At some point, Chamblee will have to discuss the whole affair in front of a Golf Channel logo.

I suspect the Woods camp will want more than a Twitter apology from Chamblee. Even then, I think the damage might already be done. Woods, who definitely knows how to hold a grudge, will want to make Chamblee pay, and his main employer, Golf Channel, still could be impacted.

Also, regarding last night’s tweet, I think that Chamblee found himself way out on the limb here, much further than he imagined. Perhaps he underestimated the intense reaction to his comments, forcing him to find a way to get back to safer ground.

The key line in the tweets is Chamblee saying, “golf is a gentleman’s game.” Indeed, I’ve been covering golf since 1997, and I can’t recall an incident of a player calling out another player as a cheater. Help me out if I’m wrong here.The Vijay Singh thing happened in the ’80s.

“A gentleman” doesn’t label a player as a cheater in public. Instead, it is handled internally, away from the cameras.

Labeling a player as “a cheater” is the worst allegation in golf. Chamblee knows that. Perhaps he realized what he wrote violated the “gentleman” code of the game.

However, notice that Chamblee didn’t apologize for his comments. He apologized for “this incited discourse.”

Clearly, Chamblee thinks Woods crossed the line this year, especially with the penalty he incurred at the BMW Championship. Chamblee is dogged in his beliefs. His views about Woods here haven’t been altered one bit.

All in all, it should make for must-see viewing when Chamblee does appear on Golf Channel again.