Faxon Out at NBC, More Jacobsen Instead

According to a press release from the Champions Tour: "Brad Faxon, who will become eligible for the Champions Tour when he turns 50 on August 1, will no longer be a part of the NBC commentary team in 2011. Peter Jacobsen, the winner of two Champions Tour majors (2004 U.S. Senior Open, 2005 Ford Senior Players Championship), will have an increased role and work eight tournaments for NBC."

Faxon had a one-year deal with NBC for 2010.

So, one of the few voices who actually understood golf course architecture is off the air. I had high hopes that Faxon would become more comfortable in his analyst role and take the opportunity to educate the golfing public about finer points of golf architecture such as strategy and options, or why a hole where "everything is right in front of you," isn't the ideal design.

I've long been a fan of Faxon. He wrote the forward to my first book, To the Nines, and even suggested courses that I should include, such as Marion (Mass.) Golf Course. I was also on site with him and co-architect Brad Booth during the construction of Bay Club Mattapoisett (Mass.). I was impressed with his willingness to ask questions during the building of the course and his willingness to admit - unlike other tour pros - that he had a lot to learn in respect to course architecture or construction.

On the air, I viewed Faxon as the anti-Frank Nobilo who during the PGA Tour's stop in Memphis last year said, of one hole, "Trees on the right, trees on the left. They act like goal posts." The worst part is that Nobilo meant it as a compliment of the design.

With Peter Jacobsen getting more air time that translates to more yucks in the David Feherty, Gary McCord school. Just what golf doesn't need.