Who’s Curt Byrum? Meet the analyst changing Paul Azinger on NBC

In contrast to Johnny Miller and Paul Azinger, Curt Byrum didn’t win a significant championship throughout his profession as an expert golfer.

Regardless of that, Byrum is an skilled analyst who offers tons of perception through the telecast. He has labored for the Golf Channel since 2001.

Byrum, now 64 years previous, will change Azinger because the lead analyst for NBC Sports activities at subsequent week’s Hero World Problem. He’ll sit within the 18th tower alongside host Dan Hicks, who has anchored NBC’s golf protection since 2000.

However many golf followers need to know, who’s Curt Byrum?

Curt Byrum – NBC Analyst

Born in raised in Onida, South Dakota, which had a inhabitants of 666 within the 2020 census, Byrum grew up taking part in soccer and basketball. Whereas at Sully Buttes Excessive College, he turned an all-state soccer participant.

He discovered learn how to play golf at a neighborhood golf course, the place he and his brother, Tom, mowed the greens. The course was basically a cow pasture, so the Byrum brothers would hit photographs all around the course, utilizing their creativeness to route round completely different holes.

Humorous sufficient, Tom Byrum turned a PGA Tour professional too.

PGA Tour

“The factor my brother and I had was our father Elliot,” Curt stated to the Argus Chief—the largest newspaper in South Dakota—in 2014.

“He was a tough driver. He pushed us to work arduous. He was the explanation we hit all these balls on the previous Onida Golf Course. I do not know how arduous the youngsters are working at Minnehaha and Westward Ho and Elmwood lately, however I do know my brother and I spent an terrible lot of time engaged on our video games and attempting to get higher.”

Following highschool, Curt Byrum took his abilities to the College of New Mexico, the place he performed on the golf group. He was a terrific participant, profitable the South Dakota Males’s Beginner Championship in 1976, 1979, and 1980, the latter two coming throughout his collegiate years.

He then turned skilled in 1982 and joined the PGA Tour in 1983.

Whereas on the PGA Tour, Byrum recorded 19 top-10 finishes, which features a win on the 1989 John Deere Traditional—then generally known as the Hardee’s Golf Traditional for sponsorship causes. Byrum received his lone PGA Tour victory by one stroke over Invoice Britton and Brian Tennyson.

Picture by Caryn Levy/PGA TOUR

He then competed on the Nike Tour—now generally known as the Korn Ferry Tour—all through the Nineties after an elbow harm required surgical procedure in 1992. He had one other process performed in 1996. His taking part in days dwindled throughout this time, however he nonetheless received two occasions on the Nike Tour in 1993 and 1999.

Byrum additionally competed within the U.S. Open thrice and performed within the PGA Championship on 4 events. His greatest end got here on the 1987 PGA Championship at PGA Nationwide in Florida, the place he tied for 14th.

He additionally missed the lower on the 1990 Masters, his solely look at Augusta Nationwide.

Nonetheless, Byrum has loads of expertise in skilled golf and has a terrific understanding of the sport, the PGA Tour, and the LPGA, all of which he has coated in depth for greater than twenty years.

Thus, the South Dakotan is undoubtedly certified to deal with NBC’s lead analyst function going ahead. Whether or not or not followers welcome his terrific perception stays to be seen.

Jack Milko is a golf employees author for SB Nation’s Taking part in Via. You may observe him on Twitter @jack_milko for extra golf protection. Make sure to take a look at @_PlayingThrough too.