In its search for a long-term replacement in the booth for Paul Azinger, NBC is landing on Brandel Chamblee for June’s U.S. Open.
On Monday, NBC announced that Chamblee would work with Dan Hicks to call the tournament as one of six (!) broadcast pairings.
Chamblee called the American Express for NBC back in January, working with Terry Gannon.
Weeks ago, NBC was still searching for a U.S Open lead analyst.
The other broadcaster pairings for the event include Mike Tirico and Brad Faxon, Gannon and Notah Begay III, Steve Sands and Gary Koch, Rich Lerner and Curt Byrum, and Tom Abbott and Arron Oberholser.
They’ll be joined by on-course reporters John Wood, Smylie Kaufman, Jim “Bones” Mackay, Roger Maltbie, Paige Mackenzie, and Byrum. Interviews will be conducted by Damon Hack and Kira K. Dixon.
Mackay returned to NBC’s golf coverage for February’s Mexico Open, while Maltbie and Koch returned for March’s Players Championship.
Replacing Azinger, who left NBC following the 2023 season after refusing to take a pay cut, has been a challenge for NBC this year. Several candidates have gotten a shot, including Chamblee, Mackay, Kevin Kisner, and Luke Donald.
At this point, with the PGA Tour season halfway completed, it wouldn’t be surprising if NBC continued rotating analysts for its golf coverage before finally making a decision for 2025.
About Joe Lucia
I hate your favorite team. I also sort of hate most of my favorite teams.