PGA Tour professional Kevin Kisner has performed a dramatic U-turn after he discovered the hard way that the world of golf broadcasting has just as many hazards as the course.
The 42-year-old, who is the lead voice of golf for NBC, tore into rival network CBS’s Masters coverage earlier this week.
In a scathing rant, Kisner took issue with the delay between shots happening in real-time and being shown on the broadcast, claiming that the network was ‘way behind the action’ by as much as seven to 10 minutes in some cases.
However, after his remarks sparked backlash, the four-time PGA Tour winner has walked back his comments, acknowledging that he had crossed a line.
‘It is what it is, man, and I just have to apologize to the golf team at CBS,’ Kisner said on the Fore Play podcast. ‘I crossed the line probably too much by talking about that whole content. And I know, from my short time in the business, how wild production is.
‘It is a very difficult thing to produce a live show and make it all work, and everybody does their best. NBC screws up all the time – we’re just trying to do our best. I went too far in being critical of them.’
Kisner went on to acknowledge the work CBS does to promote the game, adding ‘everyone’s trying to do their best, and I was too critical.’
Former CBS Sports PR boss LeslieAnne Wade tweeted about Kisner’s initial comments: ‘He might soon find out that this golf television thing is a tight syndicate and this is not how this game is traditionally played and won. Watching the back 9 closely on this…’
Kisner noted that he was juggling multiple roles as a broadcast analyst, a part-time podcaster and part-time player.
‘I feel like I am wearing so many hats… I am going to screw up. I probably shouldn’t have gone down that road at all. I could have just stepped out and said, ‘I was involved in the tournament, I don’t really need to have an opinion on it,” Kisner said. ‘Then we sit here all the time and I do have an opinion and I want to tell my opinions, so it’s an interesting line to walk.
‘I am sure we’re going to have people coming after us once I get on the NBC show now. I can handle it, it’s all good. I am not trying to hurt somebody when I have that opinion, that’s the craziest thing in the world. I was just frustrated as others and let it all come out. P****d some people off, apologized to them and won’t do it again.’
Kisner was working at Augusta National last week on behalf of SiriusXM Radio as Rory McIlroy clinched his second green jacket and he relayed what he saw on Barstool’s Fore Play podcast on Monday.
‘They were literally showing s*** that I knew happened 10 minutes ago all day long,’ Kisner said on Monday.
‘What are we doing? You have no commercials. Play live shots,’ Kisner added. ‘Our production team at NBC prides themselves at showing every shot that they possibly can live… And when we don’t, we have to say, ‘a moment ago,’ because we are trying to make the whole movie make sense.’
Kisner wasn’t alone in his fury at CBS’s coverage. For fans watching at home, the experience was marred by a string of broadcast errors.
Fans were left fuming as CBS repeatedly lost sight of the ball during the most critical moments of Sunday afternoon.
Social media erupted as the production team repeatedly failed to show the flight or landing spots of key balls as the battle for the green jacket reached its climax.
The most glaring error occurred on the final hole of the tournament, where the broadcast lost sight of McIlroy’s shot after he sent his drive into the right-side trees.
For over a minute, viewers were left in the dark about whether the reigning champion was facing a disastrous penalty or a manageable recovery on the 18th hole.
Even when the ball was eventually located in a greenside bunker, the commentators seemed unsure if it belonged to McIlroy or his playing partner, Cameron Young.
The technical blunders didn’t stop there, as the network also managed to miss the visual of McIlroy’s final winning putt dropping into the cup.
Due to a poorly chosen camera angle, the Northern Irishman’s own legs blocked the view of the ball entering the hole.
Critics labeled the coverage as the worst in recent memory, with some fans questioning if the camera crews were ‘in training’ during the prestigious event.
Beyond the 18th hole, viewers complained about long stretches where notable players were entirely absent from the screen, only for the broadcast to cut to random putts with no context.
