Golf Channel’s broadcast of the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne showed not only an incredible week of golf, but some emotional moments as Tiger Woods and the United States fought back for an eighth consecutive victory.
The emotions continued on Sunday during a segment on ‘Golf Central Live From,’ where host Rich Lerner and analyst Brandel Chamblee paid touching tribute to Frank Nobilo on his last segment before joining CBS.
Lerner opened by giving the viewer some background on Nobilo’s career, noting how he was “a Sunday fixture at major championships” in the 1990’s before injuries took over the prime of his career.
“The first event I ever covered for Golf Channel was the 1997 Wyndham Championship in Greensboro, which Frank won,” said Lerner, who went on to note how Nobilo has become “one of the most respected voices in the sport.”
“Frank, 16 years I’ve been sitting next to you, I feel like I’ve argued more with you than my ex-wife, and I think I’m consoled by the fact that I don’t have to send you checks,” joked Chamblee, whose arguments and debates with Nobilo have produced compelling television over the years.
Chamblee added he’ll miss not only Nobilo’s boxing analogies, puns and long, unfunny jokes, but also his analysis and “unbelievable versatility” and ability to take the players’ perspective.
After taking a few seconds to collect his thoughts, Nobilo said it was a “touch of irony” that his last ‘Live From’ segment came at Royal Melbourne, where he was a member of the International squad’s lone Presidents Cup victory over the United States in 1998.
“From the Presidents Cup back in ’98, it was a band of brothers, I enjoyed that form a golfing point of view,” said Nobilo. “Brandel, Rich, I’ve had the utmost pleasure to sit alongside, argue, but more importantly enjoy the game just as much as you.”
