2020 PGA Tour

BigMike

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Great tourney. Not having fans certainly does kill some of the buzz, but on the other hand it is great to see the players actually having to play the course, instead of having critical horrible shots turned into not bad at all being actually punished for awful shots.

On the other hand of course the lack of camera's and blimp did certainly impact the viewing. Although I give credit to CBS for doing as much as they possibly could with what they had.
 

staz

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The cradle of the game.
So, upon reflection: how much of a net negative was not having fans at Colonial this week? Or for that matter, was it neutral or even a net positive to not have them there? I loved it, to be honest; at worst it was a push for me, as any lack of atmosphere was compensated by the novelty factor, and by the purity of the competition. Golf really is the perfect sport to lead the charge back to normalcy after the lockdown, in my opinion...and I'm actually a little emotional here at CP Manor to have had such an awesome sporting event back in my life this weekend.
At worst it was a push for me as well. No don't get me wrong, the ovation a tournament leader gets walking up to the 18th green on Sunday is special, but as for the other 71 holes, I can certainly live without all the "YOU DA MANs" and whatnot.
 
On the other hand of course the lack of camera's and blimp did certainly impact the viewing. Although I give credit to CBS for doing as much as they possibly could with what they had.
I was actually impressed by how many elevated camera positions CBS was able to use, particularly relative to the Featured Groups/PGA Tour Live coverage - it looked a lot more like a normal tournament than I was expecting. The microphone positioned between 9 green and 10 tee, which I think is the same one used to interview the players who had just finished their rounds on Sunday, was also pretty inspired. And re: the blimp, is it just me, or was Bubba's final birdie putt on 18 on Sunday not taken from the blimp? I didn't notice that angle much at all, but that one putt really stood out for me.

I thought CBS's announcers were also generally better than I remember them being for a while. (Has Mark Immelman featured as an on-course reporter much in the past? I enjoyed his work this week.) There were still too many commercials and a few too many shots missed - although I'm willing to cut CBS some slack about the latter, given the issues they had to cope with - and shoehorning Charles Schwab his ownself into the broadcast was...unfortunate, but I thought that was one of CBS's better tournaments in a while. Or maybe I was just so desperate for proper golf on television that I was willing to overlook a multitude of other sins?
 

cshea

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The Charles Schwab spot is a weekly occurrence. It is a tour thing, not CBS. The CEO or other big whig from the tournament sponsor always gets the 2-3 minutes of grab-ass with Nantz/Hicks. The commercials were brutal, Golf Channel/NBC bad. CBS jumped on the “play through” commercial break which is really just disguising additional commercials. The broadcast itself was better. Nantz can die in a fire but he was decent and I like Faldo. Due to the lack of fans, they seemed to make an actual effort at getting and using the audio from the players. There were some great caddie/player conversations picked up and the broadcast did a better job of getting out of the way and letting that audio set the table than they have in the past. I’ll give them a pass on some of the camera work as they are a bit handcuffed in how many cameras they have. Missing Spieth’s chunk on 1 was inexcusable. Brought back memories of them missing HVIII’s cold top on 10 at Riviera.
 

patinorange

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I just finished watching. I can no longer watch golf live. The commercials are just too brutal. I thought CBS announcers were ok given the circumstances. It was great to have some sports on the tube. Pretty good drama down the stretch. I definitely feel better about my shitty putting on short putts. These guys miss them sometimes.
 

TFP

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Wow - NLU has Jim Nantz on the podcast that just dropped tonight. Must listen for me.
 

cshea

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Quick triple for Spieth on the card. Ran the full gamut. Drove it off the map and either OOB or lost. Had to go back to the tee. Also missed a 2.5 footer for double.

He’s not in a featured group today but he’s kinda must watch. I know a lot of people don’t like him, but those people can revel in his badness. Absolutely no idea what the next shot from him will be.
 

TFP

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Quick triple for Spieth on the card. Ran the full gamut. Drove it off the map and either OOB or lost. Had to go back to the tee. Also missed a 2.5 footer for double.

He’s not in a featured group today but he’s kinda must watch. I know a lot of people don’t like him, but those people can revel in his badness. Absolutely no idea what the next shot from him will be.
Him and Bryson are both appointment viewing right now.

Of course he follows up the triple with a birdie.
 

cshea

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Spieth birdies 2, 3 & 4(his 11th, 12th, & 13th) to get to -1
Another one at 5.

This is following last week's playbook. Ugly opening then an awesome 30 or so holes before hitting the skids and having to grind like none other to stay in it. The crazy thing to me is how no shot is really safe. The driver/long clubs are clearly his biggest problem, but he also had a lengthy stretch last week where he couldn't hit a green from the fairway with a wedge to save his life. He chunked/flubbed chips. The putter is his best skill right now, but he'll make a bunch of 40 footers and then inexplicably miss 2 from inside 4 feet. It's wild.

Edit: I think the NLU guys said it was exhausting to watch him and that's absolutely the case
 
Nantz sucks.
Was this response your reaction of actually listening to the podcast with Nantz? Because I listened to the first half of it during my own round of golf this morning, and I'd agree that it wasn't really the best interview - Nantz was slippery and a bit defensive about the coverage takes, and didn't really confront some of the issues head on, and unfortunately our esteemed NLU host showed his journalistic inexperience, sounding too much in awe of his guest and not really pressing Nantz with his true feelings about CBS' coverage. Not worth the time I spent listening, unfortunately...and I'm someone who is generally positive about Nantz (even if I feel that "oleaginous" is the one word which best describes his commentary style). I think the sports world is divided firmly into two camps, those who want to like Nantz and those who actively want to hate him; I'm definitely in the first camp, but that interview didn't make me feel any more positive toward him.
 

cshea

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The executive who said “you know what, Davis Love III and Webb Simpson would make an excellent featured group” should be fired immediately.
 

ezemerson

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I find myself staying tuned into featured groups because there's less breaks than tv coverage, which essentially shows the featured groups only anyway
 

cshea

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Watney tested negative at the start of the week, felt sick and was re-tested which was obviously positive. He traveled to the tournament privately.
 

TFP

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Watney tested negative at the start of the week, felt sick and was re-tested which was obviously positive. He traveled to the tournament privately.
Fried Egg saying there’s word of multiple positive tests going around.
 

TFP

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I find myself staying tuned into featured groups because there's less breaks than tv coverage, which essentially shows the featured groups only anyway
This is the way to go. And you don’t have to listen to Faldo get triggered by Koepka every time they show him.
 

TFP

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Was this response your reaction of actually listening to the podcast with Nantz?
Yes. Just an absolute disaster of an interview by him. Condescending, pretentious, unprofessional and clearly pre-planned to get his talking points across regardless of the questions asked. I don't usually mind him as much as others do, I fall pretty neutral on him. But this interview was a joke.

And Soly (aka "Chris" - he's NEVER called Chris, Nantz is an asshole) posted about the interview on their message board. He basically said Nantz/CBS reached out and asked to have Nantz on. And that they debated it internally because they knew this was going to be the case, but figured they bash CBS so much that it was only fair to let them on. And that in their 15 mins talking about beforehand, he knew this was going to happen and turning into a more hostile interview would backfire on them. He took the route of letting Nantz show his ass and not allowing CBS to play the victim. Which wasn't ideal, but he felt it was no win.

So to recap, Nantz asks to come on to defend CBS, railroads the interview and acts like a dick, AND basically said that CBS is amazing and their product is top notch.

Here's the link to Soly's comments for those interested (it's public).

https://refuge.nolayingup.com/t/nantz-pod/30191/138
 

cshea

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How were Taylor and List allowed to play today and not immediately quarantined?
The whole thing was a predictable shit show. Tour release said Watney wasn’t on site today. Except he was. Oops. Koepka “was right next to him in the parking lot.” Watney and his caddie were on the range and putting green presumably while awaiting the test results. Keep in mind he was only re-tested because he came forward with symptoms, so they new the stakes and he was STIlLL out there. Mind boggling. Vaughn Taylor says he and List found out about it around the turn during the round today. He said they were all tested again but the timing of that test isn’t made clear, nor does he say if they have the results back. I’d hazard a guess they did it after the round.

View: https://twitter.com/bobharig/status/1274095175883776002?s=21

View: https://twitter.com/jamiecweir/status/1274095710489776129?s=21
 
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Yes. Just an absolute disaster of an interview by him. Condescending, pretentious, unprofessional and clearly pre-planned to get his talking points across regardless of the questions asked. I don't usually mind him as much as others do, I fall pretty neutral on him. But this interview was a joke.

And Soly (aka "Chris" - he's NEVER called Chris, Nantz is an asshole) posted about the interview on their message board. He basically said Nantz/CBS reached out and asked to have Nantz on. And that they debated it internally because they knew this was going to be the case, but figured they bash CBS so much that it was only fair to let them on. And that in their 15 mins talking about beforehand, he knew this was going to happen and turning into a more hostile interview would backfire on them. He took the route of letting Nantz show his ass and not allowing CBS to play the victim. Which wasn't ideal, but he felt it was no win.

So to recap, Nantz asks to come on to defend CBS, railroads the interview and acts like a dick, AND basically said that CBS is amazing and their product is top notch.

Here's the link to Soly's comments for those interested (it's public).

https://refuge.nolayingup.com/t/nantz-pod/30191/138
Thanks for linking to Soly's comments. Yikes. Sounds like Soly was put in an impossible position, albeit one which a more seasoned journalist might have handled rather better. And that certainly pushes me along the Nantz spectrum, and not in a good way.
 

FL4WL3SS

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Yes. Just an absolute disaster of an interview by him. Condescending, pretentious, unprofessional and clearly pre-planned to get his talking points across regardless of the questions asked. I don't usually mind him as much as others do, I fall pretty neutral on him. But this interview was a joke.

And Soly (aka "Chris" - he's NEVER called Chris, Nantz is an asshole) posted about the interview on their message board. He basically said Nantz/CBS reached out and asked to have Nantz on. And that they debated it internally because they knew this was going to be the case, but figured they bash CBS so much that it was only fair to let them on. And that in their 15 mins talking about beforehand, he knew this was going to happen and turning into a more hostile interview would backfire on them. He took the route of letting Nantz show his ass and not allowing CBS to play the victim. Which wasn't ideal, but he felt it was no win.

So to recap, Nantz asks to come on to defend CBS, railroads the interview and acts like a dick, AND basically said that CBS is amazing and their product is top notch.

Here's the link to Soly's comments for those interested (it's public).

https://refuge.nolayingup.com/t/nantz-pod/30191/138
I honestly can't believe people care about this stuff, how fucking boring. You should have shut it off and done something better with your time, what a waste. Who gives a shit what Nantz says about anything and especially about some bitching contest about CBS.
 

mauf

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How were Taylor and List allowed to play today and not immediately quarantined?
I’m sure they did a contract trace. My understanding is that CDC defines a “close contact” as someone who was (1) in close physical contact (e.g., a hug) with an infected person, (2) within 6 feet of an infected person for 15 minutes or more, or (3) in an enclosed space (even if more than 6 feet apart) with an infected person for more than 4 hours. Not surprising that no other players met any of those three standards. It obviously doesn’t guarantee that none of them contracted the virus, but that’s why we’re supposed to keep our distance from others in general.
 

cshea

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Tyrrell Hatton in the final pairing with no fans and live mic’s everywhere. This will be tremendous.
 
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The Needler

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And Soly (aka "Chris" - he's NEVER called Chris, Nantz is an asshole)
Nantz certainly sucks, but this just isn't true. Lots of his interview subjects call him Chris. Not everyone is comfortable calling someone by a nickname, especially when they've never met.
 
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patinorange

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Just finished watching the third round. Lots of low scores and should be a good one tomorrow.
Langer and Els both made the cut and played decently. Not a word. Golf coverage is horrible.
Same dozen guys over and over again. Throw in some variety once in a while.
 

TFP

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Nantz certainly sucks, but this just isn't true. Lots of his interview subjects call him Chris. Not everyone is comfortable calling someone by a nickname, especially when they've never met.
Yeah that’s fair. It was more the tone but in hindsight you’re right.

In other news, Bubba and Wesley Bryan are must watch on PGA Tour Live right now. Chirping each other, laughing, and just flat out having a great time out there. It’s like 2 weekend buddies playing a fun round.
 

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Yeah that’s fair. It was more the tone but in hindsight you’re right.

In other news, Bubba and Wesley Bryan are must watch on PGA Tour Live right now. Chirping each other, laughing, and just flat out having a great time out there. It’s like 2 weekend buddies playing a fun round.
In related news, I just learned that Wesley Bryan is still on the Tour.
 

riboflav

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Golf coverage is the worst. JT, who may actually win the tournament, has had one total shot shown in 90-plus minutes.
 

cshea

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Golf coverage is the worst. JT, who may actually win the tournament, has had one total shot shown in 90-plus minutes.
He’s going to run out of holes. Kinda weird thing to say when a guy is -8 through 16, but the 3 bogeys are going to doom him.
 
Golf coverage is the worst. JT, who may actually win the tournament, has had one total shot shown in 90-plus minutes.
How many cameras, and camera operators, do you think are present at Harbour Town this week? Seemed obvious to me that PGA Tour Live was covering the first few holes, the 9th hole and the 16th to 18th holes - presumably because that's all the manpower available to them. With so many players within a few shots of the lead, it's an impossible task to cover a tournament like this at the best of times with full network resources in place. There are reasons to slam American golf coverage, but I'm absolutely going to cut them some slack for this sort of thing.