Golf coverage/commentator discussion thread!! Mod note #12

She had a long interview with Butch at his range that was aired one of the evenings. She is excellent to be fair, not used enough really

Tom Brady, the GOAT American footballer got a ten year contract worth $375 million. Tiger is a bigger name than him and might command $50 million per year if he decided to be a commentator/analyst.

I don't get how everyone doesn't see and hear that, she's like a cat following a ball of string.

Oh that's a good shot, oh wait where is it going now, that's a poor shot, oh wait it's still moving, I wonder where it's going ad nauseaum.

She's really poor but plenty like her so go figure.

I think Nick Dougherty does a decent job as an anchor though.

Feel like the fact that we've praised and critiqued the same names over and over again suggests that Sky may need some new blood. Having said that, I still regard Ewen Murray as the consumate pro, level headed, eloquent, incredibly knowledgeable (encyclopedic ability to recall major winners and contenders from last year to 50 years ago) and never a hint of bias in his pronouncents.

Otherwise..

Dougherty. Excellent host in a thankless job. Livingstone a hard act to follow but Dougherty has surprised me with his ability to ad lib, especially if theres a delay. Manages to hide his contempt for both Faldo and Davies, whose respective narcissism and sheer incompetence must grate with him at least as much as it does the rest of us, to the average fan as well as anyone could. But avid watchers know how he really feels about them.

Davies. Hopeless. One premature call after another, often followed by awkward silences as whoever else is in the box with her contemplates staying quiet in deference or correcting her and probably getting fired as a result.

Iona. Underused. Polished and measured. A good pro.

MccGinley. Been enough on him aleady but to sum up, he is overly excitable and it shows in his commentary. Trips over his words, loses context and seems not to see significant developments as they unfold in front of him. I think hes probably a good guy and he clearly loves golf but he just makes so many mistakes.

Butch. Tolerable. He has such an amount of swing knowledge and he is well able to communicate it that it is clear why he is so revered as a teacher. Prone to repeating tired lines however (I like / love this guy, young man….etc) and he knows next to nothing about anybody that he hasnt actually coached that outside of swing analysis, he hasnt much to offer. Id like to see an unfiltered Butch commentary, would say hes some great stories, nearly all of which hes afraid to share.

Beemer. Hes fine. A lot better on the course than he is in the booth. Just repeats things that others have said in a more dramatic accent much of the time.

Radar. Great on the course. Shouldnt ever be anywhere else.

David Howell. Sinfully underused. Knowledgeable, witty and self deprecating. Would love to hear more from him.

Faldo. Intolerable. An ego maniac and not a good speaker. Sentences melt into English gibberish where words like smidgeon represents the depths of his vocabulary. Unable to talk about anything without first asking himself: WWNFD?

I watch an amount of it on US TV through d***y means and the ads do get to you. Also, to be fair to Sky, they actually show more golf as they take some shots from European golfers.

This was CBS Sports:

Jim Nantz will host the network's Masters coverage for the 37th year alongside Trevor Immelman as the lead analyst.

Frank Nobilo, Ian-Baker Finch, Andrew Catalon, Dottie Pepper and Amanda Balionis will join Nantz and Immelman for the network's main broadcast coverage.

I like Nobilo and Dottie. Bones on another network and is good.

Interesting! I never switched over. I wonder is that part of the CBS deal with the Masters to limit the ads.

Padraig talks to Joe.

Sign him up, Sky. (Padraig!)

Tiger is a bigger name but, in the US, probably not by any great margin plus the viewership figures for golf in comparison to NFL are apples and oranges. No way on earth his contract would be at the same level as Brady's let alone 33% higher.