It was attention-grabbing last week when the Masters telecast featured Rory McIlroy, Max Homa and Justin Thomas as they took turns talking to the television audience while competing at Augusta National, which continues to show its embrace of modern technology.
The popular new enhancement was drawn into even sharper focus on Saturday when Thomas put the earpiece in, talked his way through the 14th hole, then bogeyed three of his last four holes to miss the cut by one stroke.
Skeptics quickly pointed to the intrusion as a reason why Thomas flamed out.
Not so, said Thomas, who has come around to the idea of on-course interviews after saying three years ago that he wouldn’t participate.
“I thought it was totally fine. I said to someone that I liked it, given the circumstances and where I was, because it almost gave me a little bit of reset. It felt like a good opportunity for me to be positive and talk through things a little more,” Thomas said after his first round here at the RBC Heritage.
“I felt like it wasn’t a big burden on anything I was doing.”
The walk-and-talk sessions on CBS Sports’ weekend coverage have become a popular part of the network’s refreshed PGA Tour coverage.
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