Mike Tirico may not have been one of the main voices of golf on television if he had known just how critical fans of the sport can be back when he first took over as a lead announcer nearly 30 years ago.
Appearing on Tuesday’s episode of the “Fore Play Podcast,” the NBC play-by-play man was asked about the constant criticism that golf fans have for announcers and network coverage of the sport.
“What I didn’t realize when I got into golf, that even before social media and before podcasts and before people spoke up more about their personal feelings, golf viewers were not shy in expressing what they thought,” Tirico said. “And I was not a ‘golf guy.’ Brent Musburger was doing ABC’s golf, and I did two events on the Senior Tour, and my boss from ESPN moved to run ABC Sports, and then they asked me to come over in ’97, join Curtis [Strange] and kind of reset their team.
“If I knew how much criticism was waiting being part of that, I might not have taken the job. … I’m glad it did because it gave me a chance to be a lead network broadcaster at something and change the trajectory of my career.”
Tirico was named the host for ABC Sport’s golf coverage in December 1996 and remained a part of the sport’s coverage after he moved to NBC in 2016.
But in those early days, he had very little experience broadcasting golf and he noted how impactful Strange, Gary Koch and Andy North were in helping him get settled.
“Without them 30 years ago, I would have been a failure. I’m glad I didn’t know the perils that were waiting, but glad I survived it,” he said.
Tirico is one of the most widely respected broadcasters on television and he has covered everything from the NFL to the NBA to the Olympics.
