Jack Nicklaus talks a lot of sense when it comes to the ins and outs of professional golf.
When the greatest golfer of all time debate begins, Nicklaus is the man who tops most people’s lists.
The now 85-year-old won 18 major championships, and recorded 19 runner up finishes in golf’s four premier competitions.
Nicklaus also won 73 regular PGA Tour events.
He is now a real legend of the game, and rightly so. The Golden Bear is also not afraid of the odd controversial take here and there.
Nicklaus recently suggested he would hit the ball 50 yards longer with today’s modern technology.
The 18-time major champion has also made it clear that he isn’t happy with the way that modern golf course architecture is headed.
Nicklaus suggested that some golf courses in the world are becoming obsolete due to the distances that players are hitting the ball these days.
Most of his takes are bang on the money. However, he definitely missed the mark with one of his opinions during the Memorial Tournament last week.
Jack Nicklaus’ comments at The Memorial Tournament were wrong
Nicklaus was on commentary duty during the Memorial, and took part in numerous press conferences at Muirfield Village.
The 73-time PGA Tour winner offered some great insight for the fans, especially down the stretch at the business end of the tournament.
However, at one point, the Golden Bear shared his sheer and utter disdain at one thing that happens in modern-day golf.
He explained why he feels that mid-round interviews simply shouldn’t happen.
“I can’t stand that, the interview on the golf course,” Nicklaus fumed.
“Let me tell you how I think, how I feel…I mean, seriously, here’s a guy, leading the golf tournament, he’s just hit the edge of the rough, he’s got a very difficult shot on a very difficult hole, and you’re talking to him about stuff that totally takes his mind off of what he was doing.
“How do you think Hogan would respond to that question? You would not have any teeth left if you did…He’d hit you right in the face with it.”
That’s an extremely tunnel-visioned take for someone who is usually so on point with his opinions on the game today.
Justin Thomas has already shown why Nicklaus missed the mark
Back in January, Justin Thomas wrote an open letter to the PGA Tour regarding how golf fans deserve more real-time insight from the players.
Thomas urged the PGA Tour to make some changes regarding the product being offered to the fans.
“We’re incredibly lucky to have many passionate people tuning in to watch us every week,” Thomas wrote, ”but let’s be honest—this game can feel a little distant at times.”
“The more I’ve watched documentaries and specials on streaming services on other sports, the more I’ve come to realize the main reason I love them so much is the access they provide and the insight the players are giving me; a fan of them and their craft. I had no interest in rooting for certain players, teams, coaches before watching a handful of shows and games. But the way some of them show their cards and how they go about everything makes me an even bigger fan.”
“I mean, as close as those mics are on the tees and the greens and as close as I get to boom mics during competition anyway, I basically feel like I am mic’d up. I can’t say some stuff that I usually say anyway.”
“At the end of the day, we’re all owners in this Tour,” Thomas said to close out the letter. “So, the bigger and better we make it not only benefits us financially, it benefits our fans and creates the ability for us to do bigger things down the road. Anybody who has any ideas or thoughts, please reach out to me or any of the Tour staff to get the ball rolling on ways we can make OUR Tour the best we possibly can.”
Thomas is spot on there. The more interactive the experience of watching golf is for the viewer in this day and age, the more popular the game will become.
Nicklaus would do well to remind himself that in this case, he actually missed the point regarding what the younger generation is actually demanding.
Time has moved on and the game of golf has grown exponentially over the past decade or so.
And in the cold light of day, Nicklaus will surely realize that he perhaps missed the mark with his comments on the mid-round interviews.
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