We Chat With Golf Commentators David Feherty and Mike Tirico [Video]

David Feherty Interview:

Q: You’ve previously been known to work for CBS if I’m correct, right? and now you’ve transitioned to NBC, was there any particular reason for that switch?

A: NBC and the golf channel are twins, you know, both owned by Comcast, it made sense to be under the same umbrella, plus they pay me more.

Q: So what got you interested? I heard you previously say that you don’t really watch golf anymore because it’s a job, and I totally understand that, but what got you interested into making this commentary? What actually got you into the field?

A: Well, essentially, you know I was 37 years old and getting towards the end of what I thought was a playing career and I happened to be drunk in the right bar at the right time when CBS was looking for a course correspondent, someone who knew the caddies on both sides of the Atlantic and the players of both sides of the Atlantic, and could talk a bit, I was that person.

Q: What’s the highlight that you would imagine would be palpable for some of the younger audiences, or people who don’t have access to playing courses – like people in New York City. How would you say is the best entry point for people like that?

A: Well, you know, find a PGA professional. You know, go and take some lessons, you can do it in superstores now you can hit on these simulators, find out what it feels like to catch the ball in the center of the club face. Watch it hang in the air, it’s a special game. It’s a difficult game, but once you get the hang of it, once you get the knack of getting the ball in the air it’ll hook you like a fish.

Q: You seem like you’re a very calm and collected, has that helped you achieve your success?

A: I’m basically controlling panic, even right now, between you and me- don’t tell anybody. The television- playing in front of the cameras, which I did for 20 years is a lot easier than being behind the camera or behind the microphone. This is much more of a challenge, but for me anyways, much more enjoyable.

Mike Tirico Interview:

Q: Golf, I feel like that’s something that a lot of Americans are a little bit more distanced from, How do you close that gap for a youngin’ like me?

A: Sure, well in a couple of weeks we’re gonna do a tournament that’s named for Arnold Palmer who passed away this past fall. Arnold Palmer connected with the fans better than almost anyone ever did, and I think that’s the key to connect golf with anyone who doesn’t play golf, A player you like. A player who does things the other guys don’t do and can’t do, give you something to watch something to hook onto. That was the popularity of the tiger woods era, he would always do something you haven’t seen other guys do. I think the players who are out there right now are very, very good, and if one of them can separate a little bit, then I think you’re gonna reach out to more of the non-golfers and make them golf fans.

Q: Who do you see coming through the ranks now that you would say ‘keep an eye on that kid that kid’s really gonna change the way that golf is looked at’?

A: I think in popularity, Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy have the opportunity to do that, and their rivalry, if they’re both good for the next 10 or 12 years, that rivalry brings people to the tv too. Like tennis let’s say, Jimmy Connors and John McEnroe … they had a rivalry that brought non-tennis fans to the tv. And if that develops between the 2 best players, one from Europe one from the US, Speith and McIlroy, maybe that will help create bigger stars out of them and more interest in the game. But those are two of the young guys who I think are the next level of great players.

Q: How did you get interested and involved in golf and becoming a commentator?

A: Well when I was growing up as a kid in New York, we didn’t have a lot of access to golf, but I did get a few chances to play in a public golf course and really enjoy the game. My uncle, who was my father figure growing up, was a big Jack Nicklaus fan. When Nicklaus would play well I would watch and be close to the tv and always want to go out and try it. But one thing about golf, compared to baseball or football is you can go out and try it and see if you can be good at it and do the things that you see the best in the world do. I was able to get out, play a little golf, went to college, found places to play and am I the greatest golfer in the world? No. not by any stretch of the imagination. But I love the game, I have a passion for it and I think that relates directly to the fans at home. It’s a sport you can pick up and try, I think that’s the one thing that separates golf perhaps from our other major sports.

Q: There’s a lot of mixture now that golf is seeming to have, I mean I always go to Prospect Park and play soccer, so I was wondering, do you think that would be a viable option, to bring it back to the earlier question, to mesh it with younger audiences and kind of create an easy access point I would say?

A: They’ve looked at a lot of things, they’ve even looked at playing 6 holes of golf instead of 18. 6 holes of golf might fit more of a time schedule that people have, certainly 9 holes, make that something that’s acceptable in two hours you can do it as opposed to the four hours that 18 holes take. 4 hours is tough for a lot of folks to carve out now so there are things like that. You know, anytime you get people around a golf course, hopefully they see the sport. So if it’s disc golf or soccer golf, or any of those other concepts, maybe it’ll inspire one person out of the group to try this game that the Scotts invented 4-5 centuries ago and has really endured over time. There’s no great panic for the sport, but as people and society evolve and people are less patient and need to get things over quicker, perhaps shortening the rounds of golf will help bring new people to it, cause it’s a great sport, but it’s a sport for life and the other great thing about golf is, we could bring the best golfer in the world to a golf course with me right now, we could play a match, there’s a way to balance it because we’re not playing against each other. we’re playing on the golf course, trying to score the course, so there’s a handicap system – they give me two more shots per hole to compete. So he would start with a handicap of 2 and we could compete. You can’t do that in almost any other competition where you can compete with the best in the world so, that’s the uniqueness of golf. And I think if people can kick the tires and explore, they have a chance to fall in love with it.