The relationship between NBC Sports and golf fans has been a fraught one for some time.
It won’t help that they almost missed a pivotal moment from Sunday’s final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational.
Collin Morikawa took a one-shot lead over Russell Henley heading the final round. Whatever hopes he had of separating from the pack on Sunday, they faded away on the back nine. Morikawa got off to a solid start on the day, taking a three-stroke into the 13th over Henley, Michael Kim, Jason Day, and Corey Conners. However, several mistakes opened the door for someone to catch up, and Henley was happy to do so.
After Morikawa bogeyed 14, his lead over Henley and Conners was one stroke. Morikawa and Henley made par on 15, but on the 16th hole, Henley hit a chip-in eagle to take the lead at 11-under.
Given the nature of the round all afternoon, you’d have thought NBC would be all over that critical shot, given its potential impact. Instead, they barely made it out of a Rolex commercial in time to see the ball go into the hole.
— Vid Clip Hero (@VidClipHero) March 9, 2025
Considering the impact of that shot, as Henley would go on to win the tournament by one stroke over Morikawa, golf fans were apoplectic at NBC’s gaffe.
HAHAHAHAHAHA Henley holing out for eagle to take the lead on the 70th hole and they weren’t back from commercial in time for the shot 😂😂😂😂
— No Laying Up (@NoLayingUp) March 9, 2025
Sweet coverage @NBCGolf pic.twitter.com/rE7aYbs5iE
— Dave Portnoy (@stoolpresidente) March 9, 2025
Bro did NBC just miss the first half of that Henley eagle or was that just streaming
— Christopher Powers (@CPowers14) March 9, 2025
Viewers complaining about commercials during NBC’s golf coverage is nothing new. However, that context is essential when you see how mad they are about this instance. It’d be one thing to miss a meaningless tee shot on the 3rd hole. It’s another to almost miss the most crucial shot of the entire tournament. It’s a reminder to many of them that they don’t feel appreciated or considered by the broadcaster, who seems to be putting ad dollars ahead of showing the event everyone is actually here to watch.
Ironically, Mastercard sponsored segments during the Arnold Palmer Invitational all weekend long that eschewed commercials for player-caddie interactions. If only that had been the case in this instance.
