“His voice was the soundtrack of my childhood.” – David Feherty
Feherty on Tap to Co-Host Golf Channel’s ‘Morning Drive’ Monday & Tuesday
ORLANDO, Fla. (July 19, 2012) – The “Voice of Golf,” Peter Alliss, considered one of golf’s all-time great commentators who this week is calling his 52nd Open Championship for the BBC, will visit with an awestruck David Feherty on the next episode of Feherty, Monday at 10 p.m. ET on Golf Channel.
Shot in the afterglow of his headline-making induction speech at the World Golf Hall of Fame in May – which he concluded with a walk-off, one finger salute – Alliss, former player and the charismatic BBC television golf commentator, sat with Feherty to discuss his life in the game, which included 23 tournament victories, eight Ryder Cup appearances and a stellar commentating career, which earned him the nickname as “The Voice of Golf.”
During the interview, Feherty reveals how he is overwhelmed to be sitting with the man he idolized as a child.
Feherty: “I’m delighted. This is a culmination and fulfillment of a dream for me.”
Alliss: “You’re really full of it, aren’t you?”
Feherty: “For me to be here today, talking to the man that is my greatest hero in this business – never mind golf – is so cool.”
Alliss: “You’re not going to cry are you?”
The two men also discuss the current state of golf and share some great stories along the way. Alliss is a big proponent of faster play and shares his thoughts on scoring in golf. “One thing I would do – which doesn’t go down well with the R&A and the USGA – I would abandon par,” Alliss said. “You all come and you play, and you’ve done the lowest score. But they’re terrified. What’s it matter?”
Several poignant moments during the interview include Alliss discussing the death of his daughter, Victoria, who was born with irreparable brain damage and died at age 11; and the loss of his mentor and BBC broadcasting partner, Henry Longhurst.
Debuting in 2011 as the most-watched premiere of an original series in Golf Channel history, Feherty has maintained its momentum in 2012, moving to a new night and lifting the network’s Monday primetime lineup ratings by 64 percent year over year.
On the season’s final episode on July 30, Feherty travels to Dardenelle, Ark., and the home of John Daly to find out how Daly has become one of the least- and most-liked personalities in golf, and if “Long John” has any shot in recapturing some of his glory days on tour. In between playing golf, serenading Daly’s girlfriend and enjoying a traditional Arkansas barbecue in the backyard of Daly’s home, Feherty reveals how Daly’s party image was created and how he has dealt with the aftermath; how his four marriages have not turned him away from love, but made him more cautious; how his father’s abusive discipline have influenced his desire to be a better father; and if he lives to the age of 50, whether or not playing on the Champions Tour is in his future. Parts of the interview take place in front of a huge, hand-painted mural in Daly’s home that is supposed to depict his extraordinary – and unlikely – moment in the sun in 1991 when he won the PGA Championship as an alternate. Daly says he not only dislikes the depiction but it is inaccurate. Daly and Feherty come up with a plan to make their own surprising corrections to the painting.
On the heels of The Open Championship being played this week, Feherty will co-host Golf Channel’s Morning Drive with Gary Williams on Monday and Tuesday. The shows will air from 7-9 a.m. ET.
Called “a cross between Oprah Winfrey and Johnny Carson” by The New York Times, Feherty displays an uncanny interview style that engages his subjects and brings out answers both honest and revealing. This season, Feherty has gone one-on-one with celebrities across golf, sports and entertainment including former President Bill Clinton, golf legend Bill Russell, real estate magnate Donald Trump, actor Samuel L. Jackson, and golfers Graeme McDowell, Bubba Watson, Sergio Garcia and Michelle Wie.
-NBC Sports Group-
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