Canada’s 69-year wait for a home winner of their national open is over after Nick Taylor secured a dramatic playoff victory against England’s Tommy Fleetwood in front of a frenzied home crowd.
Taylor's win was unusual in more ways than one, with the playoff stretching to a fourth hole before the 35-year-old drained the longest putt of his career - a whopping 72 feet - to finally secure victory.
The subsequent celebrations were also of note, with PGA Tour professional, Adam Hadwin, wrestled to the floor by a security guard as he went to embrace his fellow Canadian.
Earlier in his winning round, Taylor was also the centre of attention as he undertook the new mic’d up segment following his tee shot on the 15th hole. Despite holding the lead and having just four holes remaining, it saw Taylor speak to CBS analyst Trevor Immelman live on air about the crowds and his nerves heading into the final stretch.
Now, Immelman has revealed on social media how Sunday’s segments with Taylor came to be. On Twitter, he wrote: “Just to let everyone know how these things work…..the players are asked on Saturday night if they are interested in doing the walk and talk, it’s completely up to them, and they can change plan at any moment. Kudos to Nick for going ahead with it in that situation.”
The new feature has been a part of CBS’ golf coverage since the start of the year with many high-profile names taking part. Max Homa was the first at the Farmers Insurance Open, with Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas both providing insight at points in their round at The Masters.
Last month, PGA professional Michael Block also took part in an on-course chat during his remarkable run at the PGA Championship.
Just to let everyone know how these things work…..the players are asked on Saturday night if they are interested in doing the walk and talk, it’s completely up to them and they can change plan at any moment. Kudos to Nick for going ahead with it in that situation. https://t.co/zlpecOcLqYJune 12, 2023
The interviews have often been somewhat of a curse, with McIlroy’s round faltering after he took part at The Masters, while Thomas went on to miss the cut at Augusta National just a few holes after he took part in the second round.
However, it appears to have worked for Taylor on this occasion who, despite making a bogey on the next hole, was able to birdie his last two holes in regulation before edging out a nervy play-off victory with a monster putt on the 18th hole.
It remains to be seen whether the segment will be used at the US Open which starts on June 15th.
