Golf commentator reveals surprising PGA Tour request at season finale

Former PGA Tour player turned golf coach and analyst Brad Faxon says NBC's broadcast team were told to 'tone down the Ryder Cup rhetoric' during the season finale. 

The top 30 golfers in the FedEx Cup standings took to East Lake last week for the final event of the 2025 season. 

There were multiple stories that developed in Georgia - chief of which was Tommy Fleetwood's run at a first PGA Tour title after multiple close calls.

And U.S. Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley captivated viewers with a charge up the leaderboard amid his predicament. 

Faxon told a Canadian radio station that Tour officials weren't pleased, though, with the constant chatter about the forthcoming showdown at Bethpage Black. 

"So this has been something that we've talked about on and off for a while," he said. 

"We were so obsessed with it that the PGA Tour actually called NBC on Saturday and said, 'Listen, you're talking way too much about the Ryder Cup. 

"We've got to talk about the Tour Championship and the FedEx [Cup],' and we're like, 'Oh my gosh. This is one of the reasons why people are watching.'"

Scottie Scheffler's grumpy Ryder Cup exchange

Ryder Cup fever will build over the next few weeks. Team USA will be led by the dominant Scottie Scheffler at Bethpage Black. 

Scheffler is looking to make amends for his below par 2023 performance that saw him reduced to tears after the reigning Open champion and Brooks Koepka were dismantled 9&7 by Viktor Hovland and Ludvig Aberg. 

Before the BMW Championship, Scheffler was bombarded about questions about the biennial contest.

The 29-year-old was not pleased, stating he wanted to focus on the second leg of the play-offs. 

"I love answering questions about the Ryder Cup, but this is ridiculous," he said.

"We're at the BMW Championship. The Ryder Cup is over a month away. 

"If you want to talk about this week, let's talk about this week. 

"If not, I've got practice to do. I'm getting ready for a golf tournament."

Boost for PGA Tour's season finale

The aforementioned Fleetwood managed to break his PGA Tour duck at the Tour Championship. 

According to Sports Business Journal, Fleetwood's victory delivered a huge increase in viewing figures. 

The Tour Championship was NBC's most-viewed non-major of the season, drawing 4.5m viewers during the final round from 3pm-6pm. 

Golf Channel's coverage over Thursday and Friday also saw big gains, averaging 698,000 viewers - an increase in 37 per cent from last year. 

LIV Golf's team championship in Michigan averaged 422,000 viewers on Sunday on Fox Sports.