Meet The New CBS…Worse Than The Old CBS

CBS made a big statement when it let go longtime golf announcers Gary McCord and Peter Kostis. Many golf fans openly wondered how the eventual replacements would compare. Once hearing names Davis Love III and Mark Immelman, you could hear the heavy sighs. As I mentioned on the Teebox Golf Show last Saturday, I have no problem with the pair personally, but as an added dynamic, uh, no. In fact, heck no!!

Love sounds like many current golf talking heads who refuse to bash their peers. During his weekend presentation, DLIII rarely brought anything insightful and was chock full of annoying cliches–a far cry from McCord’s humor and friendly banter with his co-hosts. Immelman is decent enough but better than Kostis? Again, not even close. In fact, I’d say the CBS broadcast is worse since David Feherty left leaving McCord to court jester alone.

The Morning Read’s John Hawkins agrees with the Eye Network’s utter blandness. And can anyone realistically debate his stance?

Love is a rookie, a wonderful man without a mean bone in his body, which makes him an inexperienced version of Ian Baker-Finch, whose next critical comment about a tour pro will be his first.

McCord was effectively irreverent, snappy and playful. A 180-degree departure from the unsmiling Kostis, whose ability to dissect a golf swing – flaws and all – in less than 30 seconds made him one of the most unique and underrated analysts in the game’s TV history.

Since David Feherty hopped to NBC in 2016, however, the Eye has gone blind to the value of building a team with people who played the game and are fully stocked with knowledge about every competitor, yet remain unfazed by the task of imparting pure objectivity when the situation demands it.

McCord might not have been for everyone, but his distinctive, easy-listening style found the ideal balance in a game that should be taken seriously only by the participants. Kostis’ crusty demeanor seemed only to validate an endless fountain of information, which is why he rarely failed to enlighten an audience when breaking down a swing or assessing Tiger Woods’ latest shot from the right trees. Sometimes, you don’t realize how good people were until they’re gone.

My afternoon weekend naps just got much easier.