We here at Awful Announcing are certainly not above nitpicking a reporter or announcer over an error or for misspeaking. However, it seems there are plenty of other people more than happy to take up that charge as well.
That was the case on Sunday after CBS analyst Amanda Balionis Renner interviewed Keegan Bradley following his victory at the 2023 Travelers Championship. At one point, Renner asked the six-time PGA Tour winner “What does it mean to be a winner at your hometown event?”
A lot of viewers suddenly got up in arms over the question because Renner’s question because while the event took place in Cromwell, Connecticut, Bradley grew up in Vermont. While that might have confused some people, the question didn’t confuse the native New Englander.
“This is for all the kids that grew up in New England,” Bradley said. “Gotta sit through the winters and watch other people play golf. I just am so proud to win this tournament. Traveler’s and everybody involved puts on a first-class tournament. It’s been like this for a decade and I’m just so proud to be the winner here.”
While it doesn’t seem like too many people got worked up on social media over the semantic issue, one critic caught the attention of Renner, who said anyone bothered by the “hometown” phrase should “calm down.”
“Oookay everyone can calm down,” Balionis Renner wrote. “This is the only regular PGA TOUR event in New England that comes every year. Keegan has been coming here since he was 10-years-old and always considered it his home event because it was the closest to his home. Can we not just have nice things??”
https://twitter.com/awfulannouncing/status/1673088121863565312
Indeed, for Bradley, the New England-ness of it all was what meant so much to him.
“It’s been unbelievable,” he said about having New England fans cheering him on. “I’m so lucky and so thankful to be from this New England area and I just can’t believe — this feels like a dream.”
Now if you want to get into an argument about whether or not Connecticut actually counts as New England, well, that’s a whole other thing.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.