Mickelson joined the national broadcast for 90 electric minutes shortly after his third round Saturday, and despite the golf at TPC Harding Park being plenty entertaining on its own, what Mickelson brought to the booth was a breath of fresh air. A liveliness filled with information. If social media was any indication — and in this case it probably is — Mickelson’s performance was a hit. Once he really found his groove, it was perhaps his best work on the golf course this season.
The appearance, at least the part I could hear between some other duties and golf watching on site, was this: while over-caffeinated, Mickelson gave the show a jolt of life and inside-the-ropes energy akin to what Tony Romo has brought to CBS’s NFL coverage. Delineating something as small as the difference between missing the 4th fairway right, instead of left, just took you into that mindset of an all-time great who is also competing this week.
But more than that, he just brought a willingness to talk, inject life and make things fun. Generally, I’d say he was almost talking too much, but he also dispelled the myth that golf announcing has to be hushed. Golf needs this kind of analysis and energy to match the increased quality of the pictures and overall production delivery (which CBS is doing this week…along with help from the Kaze drone team and Goodyear Blimp crews bringing the prime cut eye candy).
Now, Phil’s energy level does call into question his motives. Maybe he just had a stronger than usual coffee that is the secret to his weight loss. Or, has he realized his future and it involves getting fit for an IFB and blue CBS blazer? Could he bring a similar passion when under contract and with nothing to prove? Or when he’s not actually playing that week?
We won’t know what the motives (or caffeine infusion levels) were, but it was a tantalizing audition that, bluntly, left the rest of the telecast feeling flat. This, despite a very competent broadcast, strong contributions from on course, a few amazing putts and genuine amazement from the announce team, and some amazing visuals combining on-course sound and drone shots. (Haotong Li and caddie talking while the drone gave us a wide shot of the Cypress, Lake Merced and overall scene was a magical production moment so good it’d seem fake to previous generations of producers.)
There’s always a but, though.
Phil’s first attempt at a joke was, in a nutshell, painful.
What a beautifully awkward bit with Phil, Nantz and Faldo *chefs kiss* pic.twitter.com/XwTkQ4ZA0c
— Outside The Cut (@OutsideTheCut) August 8, 2020