NBC Broadcast of The 150th Open: The Rory McIlroy Propaganda Show

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Rory McIlroy The 2022 OPEN Championship
Rory McIlroy and caddie Harry Diamond on the 17th green during Day 2 of The 150th Open at St Andrews Old Course on July 15, 2022 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Andrew Redington via Getty Images)

If you’ve got a wager on anyone but Rory McIlroy, you may want to stay away from the NBC broadcast of The 150th Open Championship.

Through two days at St Andrews, it no longer seems like a race for the season’s final major, with storylines emerging organically. Instead, it’s become something of a forced reality show, starring a beloved Rory McIlroy, who’s been scripted into the four-day docuseries as a conquering hero type, carrying the hopes (and smugness) of golf’s gatekeepers on his Nike-funded shoulders.

The glowing spin is so embarrassingly over the top that you half expect Dan Hicks and Paul Azinger to appear on camera smoking a cigarette after one of their overly dramatic Ode to Rory tales.

Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa The 2022 Open Championship
Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa on the 17th green during Day 2 of The 150th Open at St Andrews Old Course on July 15, 2022 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Stuart Kerr for the R&A via Getty Images)

According to Justin Leonard, “Rory’s become the conscience of golf.” We weren’t told why, but we assume it’s due to his pro-monopoly stance.

“Rory’s carried the weight of the tour on his back for the past six months (or something to that effect),” said Mike Tirico.

When Rory missed a birdie putt on the 18th hole, Azinger, whose job is to analyze shots and strategy – not root for storylines, said, “Ugh, what a shame.”

Rory McIlroy The 2022 OPEN Championship
Rory McIlroy on the 8th tee during Day 1 of The 150th Open at St Andrews Old Course on July 14, 2022 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Stuart Franklin for the R&A via Getty Images)

Azinger’s predecessor, the blunt-talking Johnny Miller, must have “gagged” hearing that kind of puffery.

My wife, who’s a casual golf fan and knows the name ‘Rory McIlroy,’ strolled by the TV several times, and on her last walk-by said, “What’s the deal, why is he being talked about like he’s the second coming?”

She was talking about Rory.

My buddy Tim joked, “I know. The syrup is giving me a damn toothache.”

Rory McIlroy The 2022 OPEN Championship
Rory McIlroy putts during Day 1 of The 150th Open at St Andrews Old Course on July 14, 2022 in St Andrews, Scotland. (Photo by Stuart Kerr for the R&A via Getty Images)

Accompanying the firehose of Rory propaganda was the bias by exclusion of LIV golfers. For instance, when a PGA Tour player would make a long putt, or hit a good shot, NBC would include graphics on the screen to boost the highlight and build a potential storyline. If the shot were made by a LIV golfer, however, NBC would quickly show the replay, provide limited commentary with no graphics, and then quickly cut away.

One of the most ridiculous examples of exclusionary bias occurred during a Golf Channel update: Rich Lerner and Brandell Champagne came on to recap the top-4 players of the day, and they started with Scottie Scheffler, who was in 5th place on 8 under. They then jumped from Scheffler in 5th to Rory in 3rd, skipping right over LIV Golf’s Dustin Johnson, who was alone in 4th on 9 under.

It was quite remarkable – in a North Korean-like way.

More to come…

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8 COMMENTS

  1. It’s tragic that we don’t have unbiased news reporting in the world today. For that to become the standard at NBC, with whom Rory has a contract, taints the traditions of fair play in the world of golf and sports reporting.
  2. Thank you for seeing it as I did also, and millions of other viewers. It was so frustrating to watch the Rory show as one of the greatest performances in a final round major was unfolding blindly in front of us!
    Finally, we got to see, before NBC and their political numbnuts even realized it. Blinded by their own ignorance and OMG, a threat to their beloved and sacred COCASION TOUR!!! The last two holes of the 2nd last pairing with both players lighting it up all fucking day.
    Absurd and disgusting.
    NBC, PGA, YOU SUCK! GROW A PAIR AND HAVE SOME RESEMBLANCE OF DIGNITY.
  3. The craziest is when DJ hit his tee ball on to the green on the par 4 9th hole leaving it like 8 feet. Azinger says “you can thank wind and technology for that shot.”

    Literally 5 minutes later Rory drives the green too but leaves it some 30 feet away and Azinger says, “that’s the beauty of Rory’s power.” ?

    I was like wtf do they not realize how based they sound?

    Then on Sunday, DJ’s in the top 4-5 and he was totally invisble by the NBC cameras and production. It was like North Korea.

    Anyone investigating collusion or whatnot needs to interview NBC staffers. Like who told them to completely ignore one of the top 2-3 greatest players of the last decade when he’s in the chase?

    If they were fair, they’d admit the real storyline was DJ overcoming all the obstacles (R&A flat out treating him like crap, media attacks, etc). Rory meanwhile was the pampered one and called immortal and basically written into the script almost willed to win.

    The media is truly garbage.

  4. I’m loyal  to every player that left the pga,period. Liv tour players need too know that. No more watching pga every weekend, I’ll wait to watch LIV.

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