The long-standing vacancy of NBC Sports’ lead golf analyst is reportedly about to be filled by Kevin Kisner.
Per Sports Business Journal’s Josh Carpenter, and as also reported by the PGA Tour, the broadcasting giant is expected to confirm the four-time PGA Tour winner in the role for 2025 imminently, where he will work alongside play-by-play announcer Dan Hicks.
Kisner already has experience in the role having performed it following the surprise departure of Paul Azinger from the position over a year ago. Kisner auditioned for the role at The Sentry in January, while he took on the task for a second time a month later at the WM Phoenix Open and was also on duty for the PGA Tour’s flagship event, The Players Championship in March.
Kisner was one of several to be given the chance to demonstrate their expertise in the position following Azinger's NBC Sports exit in November 2023. Others who stepped in on a temporary basis included Curt Byrum, Paul McGinley, Geoff Ogilvy and Brandel Chamblee.
Even with Kisner’s additional responsibilities, it does not mean the end of his PGA Tour career, with Carpenter reporting that he will continue to compete on the circuit in a limited capacity. Kisner is also one of the players signed up for the tech-infused TGL, which begins in January.
The news comes after Kisner had ruled himself out taking on the role full-time back in April, telling Golf Digest's The Loop podcast that his playing commitments made it hard to perform broadcasting duties as well.
He explained: "It started in Maui, I told them I'd do Maui for them - I was already headed there to play the Sony Open. That worked out, and I guess they liked it enough to ask me to do Phoenix [WM Phoenix Open]. Phoenix turned into The Players, and that turned into me saying 'guys, I can't keep doing this every off week. My wife is going to kill me if I never go home during off weeks!'
"My schedule is planning on still to play the whole season, and I realise it's more work than I thought as far as being able to do both. So I told NBC I was going to play until the end of the season and then we can reassess after that."
The report also states that Kisner’s position will focus solely on the broadcaster's weekend coverage, while NBC Sports is expected to continue with two play-by-play announcers and two analysts rotating on odd and even holes at its coverage of the biggest events.
The news comes less than a month after Golfweek reported that Azinger was poised to make his broadcasting return on the Golf Channel’s coverage of the PGA Tour Champions for the 2025 season, where he will replace the retiring Lanny Wadkins as the lead analyst of the men's over-50s circuit on a one-year contract.
