The Masters is considered the most prestigious golfing competition in the world, but its 2026 broadcast is under intense scrutiny due to how it was programmed. 

Former professional golfer and NBC announcer, Kevin Kisner, confessed that he found it puzzling how the production had been conducted recently.

"What are we doing, man?" he asked disappointingly on a podcast. "You have no commercials, play live shots."

"There was a couple shots in the two days that I'm telling you were seven to ten minutes behind. It was unbelievable."

"We don't want to show you tap-in on 16 and go, 'Oh yeah, and he's already hitting his shot on 17' because obviously he has to walk over there," Kisner stated, stressing the importance of proper timing.

Kisner even had to text broadcaster Colt Knost if they even had a live shot, and that he was "better off" following the coverage from the Masters app. The latter did a much better job of relaying live information to fans.

The 2026 Masters tournament was highlighted by Rory McIlroy's attempt to claim a consecutive Green Jacket. However, the CBS broadcast struggled to capture him throughout the game. Viewers who paid attention to the leaderboard saw Rory's birdies long before CBS showed the shots. It also missed his approach shot on the 18th-hole, which was a key moment.

However, we now have word from CBS after the heavy scrutiny the network was put through.

CBS Responds To Heated Backlash Against Broadcast

Veteran broadcaster and the face of the CBS panel leading the coverage of the Masters, Jim Nantz, has come to the defense of his network.

"It's live television - we all make mistakes," Nantz said on The Pat McAfee Show. "I'm really proud of our crew. They're making so many split-second decisions."

According to Peter Kessler of Golf Central, there must have been an internal error. The gap "had to happen in the truck," and that this was "[something] bordering on confusion at the worst possible time.”

CBS has rarely made broadcasting errors this big in golf. The network and Augusta have been collaborating since 1956. Despite the broadcasting failures, the network surprisingly hauled in 13.995 million viewers for the final round of the Masters.

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Written by

Abhishek Sharma

Edited by

Afreen Kabir