The walk-and-talk interview has quickly become a staple on weekend golf broadcasts for both NBC and CBS.
On Saturday, it was Matt Wallace’s turn – and, well, things didn’t go exactly as planned.
Wallace, the 36-hole co-leader, was 11 under through 13 holes and eight shots back of Mexico Open leader Jake Knapp when he put in the earbuds and started talking to NBC’s Dan Hicks and Brad Faxon. Wallace then paused to hit his second shot at the par-5 14th hole at Vidanta Vallarta.
He had a decent lie in the rough, some 265 yards from the flag. Even with water guarding the right side of the green, Wallace opted to hit 3-wood. However, Wallace’s shot came out spinny, fading too much and into the water.
"This is all part of it, isn't it?"
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 24, 2024
After his ball found the water, Matt Wallace stayed on the mic to talk through his mindset.
Class. pic.twitter.com/3LNUC3oXs1
At that moment, Wallace, who in the past has been prone to hot-headed moments on the course, could’ve chucked the earbuds into the water, too. But he didn’t. Instead, he chose to keep the interview going.
“What were you trying to do, and what didn’t you pull off?” Hicks asked.
“I thought the lie was good enough,” Wallace said. “We knew it’d come out a little bit spinny. Wind out the right, it was a perfect number for 3-wood. Didn’t expect it really to come out that spinny and that cutty. And um, it’s just – oh, just got a fly in my eye. It’s all going for me on this hole, that’s great. Yeah, it’s not quite going my way today.”
Hicks then gave Wallace a little ribbing following a 2-1 loss by Wallace’s favorite Premier League club, Manchester United, to Wallace’s caddie’s beloved squad, Fulham, Wallace explained what was going through his mind after the poor shot.
“This is all part of it, isn’t it?” Wallace said. “I need to deal with this. I need to get stronger. I need to play better golf and accept it. Get this up and down, and we go again. I can’t do anything about more than what I’m trying to do right now, it’s just not going my way.”