NBC Analyst Slams CBS for Delayed Masters Broadcast

Kevin Kisner calls out CBS for showing shots that happened 'seven minutes ago' during final round coverage.

Apr. 14, 2026 at 5:53pm

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A fractured, multi-perspective painting in vibrant greens, blues, and browns, breaking down a golf tournament broadcast into sharp, overlapping geometric planes to create a chaotic, disjointed visual representation.Cubist deconstruction of a disjointed golf broadcast, reflecting the disconnect between the live action and the delayed television coverage.Augusta Today

NBC golf analyst Kevin Kisner heavily criticized CBS's final round coverage of the 2026 Masters, saying the broadcast was often way behind the live action and relied too much on showing shots on tape delay rather than live footage. Kisner called out CBS for essentially presenting a 'fantasy world' where the announcers were pretending to call events in real-time when the actual shots had happened minutes earlier. CBS lead announcer Jim Nantz acknowledged some mistakes in the coverage but defended his crew as the best in the business.

Why it matters

The Masters is one of the most prestigious golf tournaments, and the final round broadcast is a major television event. Kisner's scathing critique highlights how even the top networks can struggle to provide a seamless live viewing experience, especially when dealing with the complexities of covering a sprawling golf course. This raises questions about the challenges of live sports production and whether networks are doing enough to prioritize showing the action as it unfolds.

The details

Kisner, who is NBC's lead golf analyst, said CBS was 'literally showing s--- that I knew happened 10 minutes ago all day long' during the final round. He questioned how the CBS announcers could 'act like they don't know what's happening when it's already happened' and said there were instances where the broadcast was 7-10 minutes behind the actual play. Kisner argued this made the entire Masters coverage a 'fantasy world' where viewers were not seeing the events as they unfolded. CBS also faced criticism for missing key shots, including Rory McIlroy's approach on the 18th hole and Haotong Li's disastrous 10 on the par-5 15th.

  • The final round of the 2026 Masters took place on Sunday, April 13, 2026.
  • Kisner's comments criticizing CBS's coverage were made on the Barstool Sports 'ForePlay' podcast on April 14, 2026, the day after the tournament.

The players

Kevin Kisner

An American professional golfer who is now the lead golf analyst for NBC Sports. Kisner played on the PGA Tour for many years and has competed in the Masters eight times.

Jim Nantz

The lead golf announcer for CBS Sports, who has covered the Masters for decades. Nantz acknowledged some mistakes in the network's final round coverage but defended his crew as the best in the business.

Rory McIlroy

The Northern Irish professional golfer who won the 2026 Masters, completing the career Grand Slam.

Haotong Li

A Chinese professional golfer who shot a 10 on the par-5 15th hole during the final round of the 2026 Masters, which CBS failed to show in its coverage.

Scottie Scheffler

An American professional golfer who was paired with Haotong Li in one of the final groups on Sunday at the 2026 Masters.

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What they’re saying

“They were literally showing s--- that I knew happened 10 minutes ago all day long. What are we doing, man? You have no commercials. Play live shots.”

— Kevin Kisner, NBC Golf Analyst

“So your entire Masters coverage is a fantasy world. It's bulls---. Whatever we all watch has already happened seven minutes ago. Could you imagine watching the f------ Super Bowl and being like, yea Tom Brady threw that touchdown seven minutes ago, we're going to act like it's live here so our announcers can sound really smart and we're going to sit here and he's going to throw it wide open down the middle but it actually happened seven minutes ago and everyone in the stadium's taking a piss. What are we doing, man?”

— Kevin Kisner, NBC Golf Analyst

“It's live television. We all make mistakes. I can't speak to the difficulty and some of the decision-making, and some of the other things that people are responsible for. I just know that our crew is the best in the business.”

— Jim Nantz, CBS Golf Announcer

What’s next

CBS will likely review its Masters production processes and make adjustments to improve the live viewing experience for next year's tournament.

The takeaway

This incident highlights the challenges networks face in providing seamless live sports coverage, even for prestigious events like the Masters. While CBS is generally regarded as the top golf broadcaster, Kisner's scathing critique shows there is still room for improvement in prioritizing real-time action over tape-delayed replays. Networks must continue to innovate their production methods to meet the high expectations of modern sports viewers.