Golf With Jay Delsing - - Bob Costas

Jay Delsing spent 25 years on the PGA Tour and is a lifetime member of the PGA Tour and PGA of America. Now he provides his unique perspective as a golfer and network broadcaster. It's time to go On The Range with Jay Delsing. On The Range is brought to you by Pro-Am Golf.

Good morning. This is Golf with Jay Delsing. I'm your host, Jay. I got John Perlis with me. Perlis, good morning. What's going on? On The Range with Jay Delsing.

I mean, the number of times I thought about being on the range with Jay Delsing, I was on the range with Jay Delsing before we'd tee off. It's windy. It's cold. It's rainy.

It's dark a lot of times. Yeah, that's right. That's right. And me, they used to have our... He probably used to have to wear a bib and then you'd have my name on it. Every once in a while when I got playing bad, he'd just take my name right off of that. He's embarrassed by it. Hardly.

Never. I did have a tough time with a lot of those straps. By the time we get to the back nine, I'd have that... I thought he was in a straight jacket, man.

It was all wrapped around that strap that he came out... They thought your name was DJ or something like that. Anyway, we formatted the show around the golf.

This first segment is called On The Range. It's brought to you by our friends at Pro-Am Golf. I also want to thank Bob and Kathy Donahue at Donahue Painting and Refinishing. Folks, if you have anything you want done on your house, their business is booming right now. They have professional painters that come and they are safe and healthy and are terrific.

So if you need anything done on your house, call Bob and Kathy Donahue. Our social media outlets. Twitter is at jdelson. Facebook is golf with jdelson and jdelsongolf.

LinkedIn is jdelsong and Instagram, we don't release that. Why don't we get that pre-recorded and have Daffy Duck and Donald Duck and Mickey Mouse calling out the social media stuff. Because this is just wearing us out. We don't even know what the heck it's for.

Although you're getting $13,000, $20,000. I don't know. It's pretty good. So our show today, we have an interview with Bob Casas.

I got to tell you, prepping for some of these guys, this just reminds me, prepping for some of these guys you look at what some of these men and women have accomplished and you're like, damn! Who's your booking agent? How do you get all these superstars? I call them.

How do you get all these advertisers? I call them. Are you a one-man band over here?

I call them. Break out the drums and the other stuff that makes... And the wine. Forget the drums.

Just break out the one-man band. Look at how many shows have we done. How many total? That is... Like a year and a half of this stuff?

We're gonna have to have a couch to have you lay down when you hear this. This is our 31st show this year. And I'm gonna put you on the spot. How many weeks are there in a year? More than 50. 52. So this is our 81st damn show.

Wow. First of all... 83rd. 82nd.

What did I say? This is the 30th show you said! 31st. 32. 31st. 81st? 31st. 32nd. 32nd. Oh my gosh. It's the 83rd. It's the 83rd.

You know what? I was thinking about when we first came on last year and we had the David Faraday interview. Man.

Love to either replay that for the folks or get another one with him. But you've had a life. Faraday's great. And he's a great guy.

And he's a lot of fun. But you got Costas. You got Jacobson. You got Nance. Jim Nee. Are you ever gonna run out of superstars?

Hopefully if we do like 600 more shows. There are 600 more superstars you can figure out and bring into this... Pearl. Pearl. ms. No.

soil. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl.

Girl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. Pearl. It's not on TV, right, Pearl?

But I'm absolutely, you know, I live on the sunny side of the street, you know, that's just where I hang out. The fact that we're getting the responses from the show, that we're getting the advertisers, it's just very humbling. But when I look at the guests that we've had on, and these people are willing to come on with me, it's just, like, pinch me. It's just fantastic. Well, it's fun.

I think that you ask some different questions and they normally get thrown, some of them like that, some get a little nervous about that. Right. But it's a little change up for them as well, which is great. And that's what, we're not trying to do the same thing. No, no, that's not.

Many other people did a great job at that other thing. We're trying to do something different. Yeah, we're not recapping.

We're not doing any of that stuff with our show. We are wanting to put you inside the ropes a time or two. We want to tell you some fun stories. We also want to tell you why we're doing this, why we're trying to grow the game, how we're trying to grow the game. Because this game is a dynamo, man. It is an economic dynamo. It's raised millions, billions of dollars around the world and it's continuing to do so.

And it gives us great entertainment right now and none of the other sports are happening. And you and I both have a tremendous face for radio and this is right where we belong. Absolutely. Not onto nothing. Face and attitude for radio, it's perfect.

Absolutely. So, that's going to wrap up on the range segment, but don't go away. We'll be back. More importantly, Bob Costas will be back and we've got almost 40 minutes of Bob Costas.

This is cool stuff. This is Golf with Jay Delsing. This is Dan McLaughlin, TV voice of the St. Louis Cardinals. Our town is one of the best sports cities in the country. There's also a tremendous history of supporting professional golf. September 28th through October 4th at Norwood Hills. It's the inaugural Ascension Charity Classic. PGA Tour champion legends like Ernie Els, Fred Kupples, Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker, and many more will be in St. Louis.

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You can also reach him at grantmillersmith.com. Grab your clubs. We're headed to the front nine on golf with Jay Delcey. The front nine is brought to you by the Ascension Charity Golf Classic. Welcome back, this is Golf with Jay Delcey. I'm your host Jay. Perley May is sitting right next to me. Brad Barnes is taking great care of us in the ESPN studios here. And we are going to the front nine brought to you by Ascension Charity Classic, which we're getting closer and closer to.

We are six, seven weeks away. Let's get a little low down on your game. Where's your game stand? Game's in good shape. Game is getting much, much better.

We were kind of, if you want to say your game's lousy and they put you on the bench, we were under the bench a couple, probably a month ago, but much better. Things are going up. I'm just excited as hell. And also excited to have and want to thank Whitmore for sponsoring the show again.

Man, by all accounts, golf in general in this region is just blowing up and Whitmore is doing a great job in leading the pack in so many ways. And so folks, if you join over at Whitmore, there's no card fees associated with your membership. So when you play, there'll be no card fees added to your bill. There's access to 90 holes of golf. So you have the 36 at Whitmore, you have the Golf Club of Wentzville, the Missouri Bluffs, the Lynx of Dardene. There's no food or beverage minimum. So you're not required to spend any other money over there.

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I'm so excited about this interview. Here's a dude that has done 11 Olympic games. Okay, he's won Emmy awards. He's done all sorts of stuff from the NFL to MLB to Saint.

He started in St. Louis in 1974. It came O-X. So let's go check out Bob and see what he has to say. So open, Chicago with the lead. Timeout Utah, 5.2 seconds left. Michael Jordan running on fumes with 45 points.

Who knows what will unfold in the next several months, but that may have been the last shot Michael Jordan will ever take in the NBA. Bob Casas is brought to you by Golden Team. Bob, in prepping for this chat with you today, I'm looking at your accomplishments, man, and I just cannot believe the sports spectrum that you've covered in your career. I mean, I guess we could start in 1974 when you got to come to St. Louis. I'm assuming you're a kid that grew up in Queens and that you had never been to St. Louis before. I had never set foot in St. Louis until October of 1974. I was in Syracuse where I went to college.

I had gotten my first job a year before doing minor league hockey in the Eastern Hockey League for $30 a game and $5 a day meal money on the road while I was still a student at Syracuse. The only thing I really knew about St. Louis was the Cardinals and the fact that I could sometimes pick up KMOX if the signal was clear enough on the right night. And I could listen to Harry Carey and Jack Buck.

And by the mid-70s, it was just Jack because Harry had left. So I was excited to have an interview at KMOX for the chance to be the voice of the spirits and maybe to meet Jack Buck. But I thought, hey, I'm 22 years old. I have a very thin resume. There's almost no way in the world I'm gonna get this job.

But lo and behold, I did. And so when I came to St. Louis for the interview, I'm thinking this is the one and only time for the foreseeable future I'll be in this town. And what do I know about this town?

I know the Cardinals and I know that Stan Musial has a restaurant, at least he did then for many years, called Musial and Biggie's. So I went, after the interview with Mr. Hyland and with Jack Buck, I went to Musial and Biggie's by myself. And this is 1974. And all I had was a hamburger and maybe a Coke. And the bill was maybe 10 bucks. And I didn't even have any credit cards then. All I had was a little bit of cash. And as the tip, after paying the bill, I left three singles, a quarter, a nickel and a penny.

$3.31 in honor of Stan Musial's lifetime batting average of 3.31. I'm sure the waiter was puzzled, but I'm thinking I'm never gonna set foot here again. So I go back to Syracuse and a couple of days later, Mr. Hyland calls me and what do you know? I've got the job. And I'm back in Syracuse a couple of weeks after, I'm back in St. Louis rather, a couple of weeks after that, embarking upon my career with KMRX. And Bob, what a phenomenal career you've had. But one of the things as a kid, I can remember listening to you call the St. Louis Spirits games and Fly Williams, the three point line, you know, the colored ball, all of those really fun things as a kid. I grew up in North County and loved sports, but hearing your voice, the passion that you had when you called basketball was phenomenal. Well, you know, I was a kid.

That's part of it. I was a kid starting out on his first really big broadcasting adventure. I was at KMOX. I understood the prestige and the history of the station.

I understood that I was working with Jack Buck and with Dan Kelly and other legendary broadcasters on a station where Harry Carey and Joe Garagiola and others had worked. And I was a small part of that. So I was all psyched up anyway.

And of course, basketball is a fast paced sport. And I guess I just let it rip. Yeah, absolutely. And you became part of this tremendous roster of unbelievable broadcasters that this little flyover city, as we're called sometimes, has had. The people that have come through here have been just phenomenal.

Oh, absolutely. Hall of Fame broadcasters. You think about all the people that have been associated primarily with St. Louis that are in the Baseball Broadcasters Hall of Fame, the Broadcasters Wing in Cooperstown or various other broadcasting halls of fame, bold face names. There has never been a radio station, and this is a considered opinion, never been a radio station, more influential or better in quality than KMOX over the course of decades, more dominant in the ratings and more respected in every way. And it's only a small exaggeration to say that especially in sports, we had a roster of people there that could have stopped the network's entire sports department.

Oh, there's no question. I had Jay Randolph Sr. on, oh gosh, a couple of months ago, Bob, and he talked about the Gary Benders of the world and some of those guys that, because we had the Big Red back then. And oh man, as a kid, you just don't appreciate it as I'm older now and I've been fortunate to be in sports. I'm like, man, St. Louis has just got a first class seat that doesn't have to take anything from any other city in terms of our broadcasters. Yeah, even Dan Girdorf began broadcasting at KMOX when he was still an active player with the Football Cardinals and went on from there to a terrific career on network television calling football. Yeah, he is a real tribute to the athlete making that transition and going into the booth and did just a wonderful job.

So Bob, I look at some of this stuff. I know I want to get to baseball a little bit and then to golf, but is baseball your true love in the sport world? Baseball and basketball, Jay, are my two favorites. And I think they're the sports to which I am best suited as a play-by-play man. I've been involved in almost every sport as a host or an interviewer or commentator. And I think I've adapted well to all of them. If there's one thing I do have going for me, it's versatility. A producer I worked with once many years ago said if there was a decathlon of broadcasting, you might not win every category, but you place high enough in all of them to win the decathlon overall.

So I hope that's true. It was a flattering thing he said, and I prided myself on that versatility. But if he asked me to confine it to the two, I would say it'd be baseball and basketball. And some of your baseball partners, between when you started with Al Bando and Tony Kubek, Joe Morgan, Bob Euker, Tom Seaver, I mean, you were one of those guys that made it work no matter who was your partner. And that can't be easy to do.

You know, that's one of the things that many of us pride ourselves on. I think of my friend Al Michaels. Al through the years had established himself as a great play-by-play man on Monday Night Football. And they said, when John Madden came over from Fox and joined Al, well, John needs lots of room and Al is different from Pat Summerall, this isn't gonna work. Al made it work and they both shined. Then John retired and in came Chris Collinsworth.

They both shined. And so I was able to work, as you said, with Bob Euker or with Joe Morgan, different strengths, different personalities. At one time, it was both of them in the booth, three of them, the three of us. And other times it was just me and Euk or just me and Morgan. But it worked no matter how we did it. And Tony Kubek was a different kind of analyst, a wonderful analyst, but different from a guy like Joe Garagiola who was both an analyst and kind of a color man.

I never worked directly with Joe, but I think I could have worked well with him just as I worked well with Tony. And I guess the philosophy behind that is this. It isn't just that you share the microphone and respect the other person. It's this, if the overall broadcast is good, then everybody gets credit. You don't need to attract the credit to yourself or the attention to yourself.

If the overall presentation is something people approve of, then you do well. Johnny Carson said this once. I'm gonna be here every night.

I'm gonna be here Monday through Friday. But if the guest, whoever it is, biggest star or someone not as big a star, if the guest does well, then the program does well and people like Johnny Carson. And that I think should always be your philosophy. It's interesting, Bob, isn't it? Because most people's takeaway, if you do your job correctly, is the event itself. And how well did the event, did you let the event speak? Sometimes you don't really need to say much. The event can do all the talking. Yeah, especially on television.

And that's one of the things that you have to be mindful of. And during this period of time, Jay, as you know, all of the sports networks, hockey, basketball, football, baseball, they've all been playing archival games. And some of them have been games that I've called. And I don't remember everything about them.

And in many cases, I haven't seen even a snippet of them in more than 20 years. But when a really big moment happens, I'm happy that usually I've been aware enough to just shut up and let the crowd and the atmosphere carry it, and then come back in after that reaction begins to subside. Oh, Bob, case in point is, I just finished watching The Last Dance. And I think the 10th episode of that great series was basically the sixth championship for the Bulls in game seven. And it was just a spectacular call. And what a great ending. And you did exactly what you just said. Well, it was so dramatic that you say to yourself, at certain points, there's nothing I can do to add to this or enhance it in any way. It speaks for itself.

So let me get out of the way until it's time for me to come back in. But when it came to that last dance season in 98, the Bulls as a team, and also Michael Jordan as an individual, I was aware as I think anybody would be over the course of the season, that this was more than just an NBA championship, more than just a really exciting conclusion to a final. It was something bigger than that. And the proof is that it resonates 22 years later.

People were drawn to The Last Dance and really interested in it. So I knew in the moment that this was something different. And I was able to say a few things that acknowledged that. And that still, I guess, played pretty well 22 years later.

Oh, wonderfully well. Bob, is that the sport fan in you? Is that the true kid that as a sports fan, obviously you're polished and you're aware of the situation, but you're a fan of the games, aren't you?

Yes, and I hope that that comes through. I think it naturally comes through better when you're younger and you have to guard against sort of world weariness. Been there, done that, seen it all. You've never really seen it all. That's part of the appeal of sports. It's a drama without a script. You can walk into an arena or onto the golf course or into a stadium and see something, no matter how many events you've been to, see something that you've never seen before.

You don't know when, you don't know if, but it could happen. And you always have to be open to that and always have to be willing to respond, at least in part, like a fan, like a kid. But as you said, with the craftsmanship, you hope, of an experienced professional. Oh yeah, absolutely did. This is Bob Costas here joining me on golf with Jay Delsing, a 2012 Hall of Fame sports inductee. Bob, I look at the Olympic games that you did. What a contrast between a game seven, you know, in the last dance sort of scenario that we talked about, and doing 11 different Olympic games. And oftentimes there's quite a bit of political things that you could have been drawn into in those Olympic games, weren't there?

Yeah. And sometimes you had to be. It wasn't that I was drawn into it. I went there willingly and knowingly because you can't do an Olympic games from Beijing and not note, hopefully not in a way that gets in the way of the appreciation and enjoyment of the action.

I would never do it over Usain Bolt or Simone Biles or Michael Phelps or whatever it might be. I believe in the excitement and the drama and the shared experience of sports. But there are times, especially when you're hosting, there are times when you can address some other things without detracting from that shared enjoyment of the sport itself. And so you can't do an Olympics from Beijing and not note that this is, despite their improvements, this is an authoritarian society. This is a place where there's a firewall on the internet.

This is a place where pre-speech is not respected and in fact is discouraged. You have to note those things. And when the Olympics are in Sochi, Russia, you have to note they're not there just because Vladimir Putin likes hockey and downhill skiing.

It's there in part to gild the lily of a regime that is involved in a lot of really terrible things and much of the world knows it and objects to it. Or in some cases, an athlete comes from a certain background or situation that is worth noting because their journey and the circumstances out of which they came is what gives additional meaning and interest to what they're attempting to do or attempting to accomplish in the context of the Olympics. And even though the Olympics are supposed to embody universal ideals, there are always political factions and political overtones that creep in. And just as a matter of awareness, so you don't insult the intelligence of the audience, you have to not dwell on those things but at least acknowledge those things so that the audience knows that you're credible and you're aware.

Yeah, Bob, not easy. I mean, probably one of those things when you were a kid growing up in New York and calling minor league hockey that you probably didn't ever dream that you'd be on this major stage, or maybe you did dream be on this major stage with all of this on your plate for the Olympics. You know, Jay, I never did as much as I admired Jim McKay. And he was wonderful as the longtime gold standard host of the Olympics.

I never saw myself in that role. When I was at Syracuse University and thinking of being a broadcaster, in my head, that idea was someday being one of the voices of a major league team in baseball on the radio. And then maybe in the off season doing basketball play by play on the radio. And even after I went to NBC, my initial assignments were football, basketball and baseball play by play.

It was only after Bryant Gumbel left the host chair at NBC Sports and went to the Today Show that Mike Weissman, who then was the executive producer along with Don Ohlmeyer at NBC Sports said, hey, you can do this. And I said to them, you know, in St. Louis, I never hosted anything. I've never read a teleprompter in my life. In fact, for the first four or five years that I was a host of sports at NBC, I never used a teleprompter. I just ad-libbed everything because I was more comfortable that way. But they had seen me as the host at the 83 All-Star Game in Chicago, the 50th anniversary All-Star Game, which Vin Scully and Joe Garagiola called. And they asked me to host it, to bring it on the air and introduce all of the all-time all-stars that were there for the celebration. And I did that.

It was easy enough for me to do because of my affinity for baseball. And they liked that. And from that, they said, well, you can do whatever we ask you to do.

And I'm thinking, boy, you may have me biting off more than I can chew here, but I guess it worked out. And then from hosting the football, it became natural that I would host the basketball when the NBA came to NBC. And that was in the early nineties and up next was the Barcelona Olympics. So one thing led to another. And the answer to your question is, yeah, I found myself hosting a dozen Olympics, 11 of them in prime time, when that was never a career ambition of mine.

But I'm certainly glad that it wound up that way. Bob, you just mentioned an old friend of mine, Don Ohlmeyer. When we were playing golf at UCLA, he was a member at Bel Air, which is where we got to play twice a week, and just a huge supporter of anything UCLA. And I got an opportunity to play with him at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, which was just terrific. But you had an interesting, he kind of gave you an interesting moniker when you first met him, didn't he? Well, a couple of things. Don sadly passed away before his time a few years ago.

And his memorial service, at which I was one of the speakers, his memorial service was at Bel Air, sittingly, at twilight, or as twilight approached, the sun going down, just a beautiful, serene, and sitting environment or setting for that otherwise sad occasion. Don, when I started at NBC, he was a champion of mine, but he called me into his office early on and said, you know, we think you're pretty good. We think you got a future here. Let me ask you something. How old are you? And I said, I'm 27. And he said, God damn it.

You look like you're 14. How much older do you think you would look if you grew a beard? And I said, well, five years at least. And he perked up. He goes, five years, really?

I said, yeah, because that's how long it would take to grow it. And he really liked that, and that was funny. Okay, and now speaking of golf, shortly after that, one of my early assignments is to do the Hula Bowl with Bob Trumpey in Honolulu. So we're there several days before, and Allmeyer's producing the game.

And so we all go out to play golf. I forget what course we were. I might have been YLA, does that make sense?

Yeah, sure, or maybe YLA, yeah, depending on what island, if you're on the big island. Yeah, okay, one or the other. So anyway, we're playing. And as we're walking along, I'm telling you some stories and hitting them with some jokes, and he stops right in the middle of the fairway. And he says, this is the key. If you never get any better, you will be good and you'll have a long career in network TV sports.

But if you let this part of your personality come out, if what I'm seeing here cleaned up, taking the dirty parts out, if what I'm seeing and hearing here becomes part of who you are on the air, then you won't just be good, you can be great. And that's exactly what he said to me. And then wouldn't you know it, shortly after that, David Letterman asked me to be on one of his shows just after he started in Late Night on NBC. And he wanted someone to do a mock serious play-by-play of elevator races. He took two people out of the audience. He handed them mock Olympic torches. He had them run out of Studio 6A, down the hallway, get in the elevator, go down to the lobby, run around the block at 30 Rock, come back, get back on the elevator, get back in the studio, and whichever one got there first would win the elevator race.

So I did this as if it was coming from Mount Olympus and the epitome of the Olympic games. And David really liked it. And he had me come back at the end of the show and sit down next to him. And then I was on his show after that many, many times. And that experience, along with Allmeyer's advice, really changed me. I became more like I had been at KMLX and less concerned with what I was afraid of starting out, which was what Allmeyer pointed to. I looked so young. I was trying too hard to sound really well-prepared and really authoritative.

And after that, I loosened up and things turned out better. And that's going to wrap up The Front Nine. So don't go anywhere. Jon and I will be back, and so will Bob Casas. This is Golf with Jay Delson.

WXOS, WXOS HD1 East St. Louis, 101 ESPN. And are your workouts more fun than this? Well, if they are, then I want to sign you to an endorsement deal with Michelob Ultra. I'm looking for anyone and everyone who makes working out a blast. If that's you, head to teamultra.com for chances for awesome perks like Team Ultra gear and more. That's teamultra.com to enter. No purchase necessary. Open newest residence, 21 plus. See official rules at teamultra.com. Message your database and apply.

Boys will be prohibited. Enjoy your responsibility. Team Ultra, like your single is Missouri. In these extremely trying times, the management team at Marcon would like to give a shout out to our 500 plus employees and their families. Their diligence and commitment to each other, our process and our company are so good that we are obligated to state it publicly. We are so grateful for each and every one of you. You have all contributed to our success and your dedication is imperative to the continued growth of our company.

Thank you for your efforts. Marcon is the largest distributor of General Electric Appliance parts in North America, based in St. Louis, Missouri. This is Dan McLaughlin, TV voice of the Cardinals. St. Louis is one of the best sports cities in the country. We also have a tremendous history of supporting professional golf. We're excited to bring professional golf back to St. Louis with the inaugural Ascension Charity Classic, September 28th through October 4th at beautiful Norwood Hills Country Club. Legends like Ernie Els, Fred Couples, Jim Furyk, Steve Stricker, and many more will be in St. Louis. For tickets and sponsorship information, head to ascensioncharityclassic.com.

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Call us at 314-781-7775 or find us at proamgolfusa.com. USA Mortgage is doing it again. Joe Scissor and his staff have lowered rates again this month, and they will waive closing costs if you want to refinance to get cash out, lower your rate, shorten your term, or eliminate that costly, unnecessary mortgage insurance.

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USA Mortgage has closed over $500 million in loans in nearly 30 years in the business and over $2 million alone to Delsings. Okay, so you and your family are looking to join a country club. Well, I need to recommend to you Whitmore Country Club. They've got 90 holes of golf in the membership out there. You have access to the Missouri Bluffs, the Links of Dardeen, the Golf Club of Wentzville, and all the cart fees are already included in your membership.

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Hey, good morning. It's Golf with Jay Delsing. John is here with me.

And we are headed to the Back 9 that's brought to you by Ed Fogelbach and the Fogelbach Agency at Farmers. I just want to jump right back in to the Bob Costas interview. This is Williams along the right sideline. Kennedy trying to help Lewis out on defense. Stu Johnson shakes free for the pass back to Williams, but Freddie knocked it away and made the steal. Now he's on the front end of the break. Behind the back to Marvin, pretty play.

Two for Marvin Barnes and a great assist for Freddie Lewis. Bob Costas, brought to you by Golden Tee. You were involved with when you were shifting over to golf. You were involved with golf from NBC from 2003 to 2014. Yeah, they would have me host the US Open or the Ryder Cup when we had it. And I always said, because the worst thing you can do is BS the audience.

You can't know everything, especially now with the information explosion we have. But I can say with assurance that I know as much or more about baseball and its history than the vast majority of people watching. Same thing with basketball.

Same thing with the Olympics. But I couldn't say that about golf. I always said to the people at NBC, I like golf. I play a little terribly.

I enjoy watching it. But I don't have the depth of knowledge that Dan Hicks has or Johnny Miller has or certainly Jim Nance or someone like that. So you have to put me in an overview role. I'll bring it on the air. I'll do the interviews.

I'll do the historical pieces. But don't ask me to opine whether the guy should be using the nine iron or the wedge here. I'm out of my depth on that. And as long as they protected me on that and didn't position me as having an expertise that I didn't really have, at least not equal to my colleagues, then I was able to do okay in those roles.

Oh yeah, more than okay. And it's interesting, Bob. Did you get a chance to tune into the match the last weekend or the weekend before?

Oh, I loved it. You know, Bob, one of the things that's interesting about the PGA Tour that most people don't know, the PGA Tour and the PGA of America were one entity in the middle sixties. And Sam Snead and Arnold Palmer and Julius Burroughs and Bob Golby, some of the real bastions of our sport, split and said the PGA Tour needs to have its own entity.

And from that point forward, they appointed Dean Beeman as our commissioner and off we went. One of the things that the PGA Tour does, we just surpassed $3 billion in charitable, creating charitable earnings and funds for those in need. And it's one of the things that I'm so proud of that you watch what Tiger and Phil and Tom Brady and Peyton Manning and Peyton was just fantastic. And Tom struggling so much, just really brought him down to earth to me. And the way that thing played out, raising $20 million is one of the things that makes this game so incredible. Yeah, and of course, Peyton is just great in any of those settings. When he hosted Saturday Night Live, all the commercials, he's just naturally really funny, naturally convivial with anyone in any setting. People were hungry for live sports content, even if it wasn't traditional.

And then like you say, when you hear that back and forth between the four of them and then Charles Barkley weighing in as well, it was just really genuine, really entertaining. But to your larger point, yeah, golf in general, I don't think enough is made of that, of all the charitable stuff associated with it. And by extension, even if we're not talking about professional golf, when you think about charitable events associated with sports, golf comes immediately to mind. Everybody we know in St. Louis who has some sort of charity, they have some kind of tournament on a Monday at whatever course is usually closed on a Monday. And that's when we all get together and raise money for charity and bust each other's chops and have a good time playing around the golf. It's almost a natural partnership, golf and charity.

Yeah, it really is. I've got a story I've got to ask you. So there is, I don't know if from your distant past, if you remember a guy you grew up with named Bob Burns. But Bob Burns- Oh, Bob Burns?

Mike, it's Bob Burns. Oh my gosh, Bob Burns was like when he was 16 years old, he was a golf hustler. He was a hustler. He took all the money I had made, my summer job practically. But he was a good golfer and he knew that I was barely so-so.

So he'd handicap it to make me think I had a chance to win and then he'd send me home with empty pockets. Bobby told me he stole your lunch money. Bob Burns came for me for two and a half years and said, I used to take Bob Costas' lunch money.

I'm thinking to myself, you know, I'm on the 14th old walking at some golf tournament somewhere and I'm like, where in the hell does that come from? But when I was doing my prep, I thought, my gosh, I got to talk to you and ask you about Bob Burns. And if you remember that name and that story. Yeah, he was a charming guy. And the Comac Hills Golf and Country Club was across the street from the junior high school we both attended.

Green Meadows Junior High School, across the street. And there was a par three course attached to it. And it was a good par three course, interesting with varying holes and whatnot. And usually our competitions played out on the par three course where he was smart enough to realize that I overinflated my chances because I, you know, I could, I buried holes now and then I part holes frequently. It was a par three course after all, but it wasn't like a putt-putt course. Some of these holes were like 195 yards. They were challenging par threes. There were shorter par threes. There were water hazards and sand traps and whatnot. I knew it was legit. Any one of these holes could have been a hole on a championship golf course.

But at the end of the day, rarely did I leave with as much money as I had arrived with. So Bob, give us a little bit of sense of what you're doing now. I know you're, you're, you're, you're mostly focusing on the MLB network in Major League Baseball. Yeah, MLB network. I'm not sure when they're going to resume or if they're going to resume in 2020.

We're waiting to see that. But even though I'm a well-known technophobe, I'm into the 21st century world of Skype and Zoom and whatever else in order to be on the air. So I've been on the air in various ways for the MLB network, for CNN, for ESPN, in and around The Last Dance and other places over the last few months. And then when the world returns to something close to normal, I'll be back calling baseball games. And while I can't say now, sometime next year, it's been pushed back by all the circumstances with COVID-19, but sometime next year, I'll be back doing the kind of interviewing and commentary programming that people associated me with earlier in my career. So that won't mean I'll leave baseball, but I'll do that in addition to baseball.

We can't wait for that. Bob, just one last question. And this is a personal question that I have for you because I know you're such a historian and a fan of the game to a much bigger degree than I am. Why is it that there is, it seems like there is constant labor strife in my favorite sport, baseball. Why is it that these owners and the Players Association seem to fight over money and issues more than any other sport?

It goes back to the contentious relationship starting in the 60s between the brilliant Marvin Miller and the owners and commissioners, too many of whom from the ownership side were dead set against what they should have been able to see which was that the game was evolving and they didn't have to give up the store, but they should have accommodated some of the legitimate concerns of the players and interests of the players. And instead it was only through court decisions or through strikes and discord that Marvin Miller was able to guide the players toward a reasonable slice of the pie. But every time they went back to the bargaining table, the owners seemed intent on taking back some of what they had to give up. And Miller, who was brilliant and honest, just as his successors Don Fear and Gene Orser was, he liked the two of them, was very doctrinaire and very unyielding. So he saw any compromise or any concession in moral terms that this is the beginning, this is the pebble that will become a boulder and start an avalanche and we'll lose everything that we've fought so hard to win.

So the two sides were always dug in. Now, one thing I'll say for Bud Selig and during most of his commissionership after the disaster of the mid 90s, they were able to have several collective bargaining agreements and more than 20 years of no labor stoppages, no lockouts, no strikes, but that history has always been part of it. It's been passed on from one generation of players to the next, one group of leaders of the Players Association to the next, which basically is don't trust them. Everything they put on the table is a gamble to take something away from us, which is rightfully ours. And so now here we are, and it seems as if neither the owners nor the players can see their overarching mutual interest in this unique set of circumstances. And that they have mutual interests here, larger than their smaller personal issues. And that if the game itself can thrive, or at least survive in this circumstance, then everybody does better. You might win your point at the bargaining table, but if in the big picture, the game and the business of baseball suffer, then that's a hollow victory. And the reason I think, Jay, that neither side sees that clearly, perhaps particularly the players in this case, is because of the scarred history. And it's been handed down as an article of faith. Don't trust them, fight them tooth and nail. That's their history. And while they battle it out, they can't see the forest for the trees, not just for their own business, but for how the public views this. In the midst of everything that's going on in the country, you're gonna take baseball away, not because of the coronavirus, not because of something external, but because of your own internal squabbles. Man, that's not gonna go down well in the court of public opinion.

No, it's a terrible look, Bob. And I also feel like the agents have way too big a say in things like in today's game. Yeah, well, Scott Boris, for example, the most famous and the most influential of the agents has been extraordinarily successful for his clients. And he's a very smart guy who has said some very insightful things about baseball and about what its future course should be. But we should never forget that his primary allegiance is to his clients and to himself as it should be. But that doesn't mean that everything he says is automatically in the best interest of the institution or the overall business of baseball. But because these players generally have done so very well by heeding the guidance of Marvin Miller, Don Fear, Gene Ors, and now Tony Clark and their agents, like you say, Jay, because that's worked out so well for them, I think as a group, they're just inclined to fall in line and say, hey, whatever these guys say, that's where I come down. And that's gonna wrap up the back nine.

Don't go anywhere. We've got the ultra 19th hole coming and we're gonna break down what Bob Costas had to say. This is golf with Jay Delsing. The 100,000 watt low torch for St. Louis sports.

WXOS and WXOS HD1, E St. Louis, 101 ESPN. Are you in the market for some new clubs, maybe a bag and the latest style of sweet new shoes? Is this year you decided to stop listening to your buddy's advice and get some real golf instruction if any of these appeal to you, then go to Pro-Am Golf today. Pro-Am Golf has all the latest gear from all the major manufacturers. Call Steve today at 314-781-7775 and schedule a lesson with Tom DeGran.

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So thank you. Marcon is based in St. Louis, Missouri, and is the largest distributor of general electric compliance parts in North America. USA Mortgage is doing it again. Joe Scissor and his staff have lowered rates again this month, and they will waive closing costs if you want to refinance to get cash out, lower your rate, shorten your term, or eliminate that costly unnecessary mortgage insurance. If you are purchasing a property, they can issue a pre-approval letter within minutes. They are the largest mortgage company in the state of Missouri, and their volume allows them to quote the lowest rates. Don't waste your time with the national online brokers. USA Mortgage is employee-owned and operated right here in St. Louis.

USA Mortgage has closed over $500 million in loans in nearly 30 years in the business, and over $2 million alone to Delsings. Grab your friends, a cold one, and pull up a chair. We're on to the 19th hole on golf with Jay Delsing. The 19th hole is brought to you by Michelob Ultra. Hey, and welcome back. This is Golf with Jay Delsing. John is with me, and we are headed to the ultra 19th hole, brought to you by my friends at Michelob Ultra. Great to have them as part of the show. Also want to thank Bob and Kathy Donahue again. They're a painting and refinishing company.

It's just rocking. When I was playing John and hanging out with Bob Rotella, he used to talk about, he used to say, John, you know, encourage Jay to see a shot so that he could go out and paint this shot after he saw it. And if you have an image of something like that for your home, these are the people to call.

They are great people, family-owned business, highly professional, and they do great work. So that's Bob and Kathy. Donahue, hey, let me just give a little plug in for the sniper ball. You know, we played some golf, and... We got three of those balls, Meat. I think I liked them, but I think it's like five swings, and they were gone.

Gosh. Well, that's why it's hard to know, but it's hard to, he's like, did you like the ball? I said, I don't know, I hit him four times.

I don't know. How about you, Meat? Wow.

I think I lost more than you got. Okay, well anyway. I was chasing him around for a while. Anyway, what were you going to say, Jay? You guys be quiet, and I just want to give that sniper a little bump.

I got a little reach out on social media. We had our first hole in one with the sniper ball last week. Guy called, made a hole in one with a seven iron from 200 yards. I'm like, damn. Hopefully downhill, downwind.

I don't know, like hopefully in Utah somewhere, right? Yeah, exactly. Anyway, it's a great golf ball.

23 bucks a dozen, sniperbrandgolf.com. Okay, Bob Casas. One of the things that always stuck out in my mind is the eloquence and the intelligence with the way that he would editorialize and slip those into his broadcasts. I don't know if you remember, Pearl, I know you're, I don't want to say a fan of China, but I think at one point in time, you were going there so often, you knew a lot about it when the wind, I think it was, was it the summer games when they were in Beijing? I think it was the summer games, but check us, you know, we're off.

Also this. It was the Olympics. The Olympics were in Beijing, and Bob Casas talked about a really, to me, a really sensitive political hot potato that he says with such matter of factness and frankness and accuracy that it was just awesome. And he mentioned that in the interview where he's saying, you know, how can it not be brought up? If sports is a part of our life, so is this. And I thought that the way that he did that and would do it was just brilliant. Well, with a lot of class, that's the key. And it's hard these days to bring up anything that's controversial or, you know, everybody goes bananas instead of just acknowledging that somebody had an opinion on something and move on from there. But I guess when you present it as smoothly as he does, I guess it's a little bit easier to digest.

Yeah, right. Well, you know, because I don't know, some of the different forums that he's had, you know, so you have the Olympics, you also have, this guy is an MLB major league baseball wiz with statistics. And one of the first times I met him, he goes, I know all about your dad. He played for the Browns and he was a pinch runner for Eddie Goodell.

And it was the Browns and the Tigers. It was 1953 and he just rolled off. And I was like, hi, Bob. Is that just photographic memory? Is that huge preparation? What do you know about how he can do that? It couldn't have been huge preparation because we just, you know, we were going to meet, but I can't, God bless him if he researched my dad, you know, before we were meeting, but he just, I think probably a little bit of everything. I think that's part of his gift. But if growing up here, I know you didn't grow up here, but he started at KMOX and immediately we're like, whoa, this is like this wiz kid. And one of the things that he did so well, he went to Syracuse University. One of the things he called, the St. Louis had an ABA basketball team, American Basketball Association. Remember it had the colored ball?

Yeah, I remember. And we had, he did the commentary, pull a clip. Unbelievable, unbelievable talk, talking about Fly Williams, who used to shoot the three pointer and you know, Dr. J was playing in the league. And so Dr. J would come to St. Louis and play hoops and Bob Costas was calling it. And it was like, this 22 or 23 year old kid, you knew something was really special. And he looks fondly at St. Louis.

Hell, he lived here for, I don't know how long, still has a home here. What's the thing that jumped out most in the interview to you? Anything surprise you or?

No, not really. I mean, just the fact that he agreed to do it. That'd be a surprise. That's a pretty good surprise.

No, that here's what it is. That on this interview, on national television, doing the Olympics, whatever, same guy. It's that authenticity that just rocks and carries the day. Have you ever been around him off set? Have you ever had a beer or dinner with him or something? I haven't had dinner with him, but I've been around him and he's incredibly shy, he's incredibly humble, and he's not one of these guys that's looking to, voices that let everybody know what his opinion is. He's not. You know, and you might think that because he's certainly intelligent and he's certainly prepped. But he's so respectful.

Well, he had Nance and then he had Acostas and they're both pretty humble, mild-mannered guys. And if I may say, you're getting awful good at it from your end. I hope you're enjoying it even more. Well, you can't say that because that's why I have you on. I'm supposed to say that, I suppose. Every once in a while you're supposed to throw me something other than the fact that you're not getting enough sniper golf balls. No, I hope you're enjoying it half as much as I am doing it because it is really fun. Well, that's going to wrap up another show. Another one in the book, somewhere between 70 and 90 shows in the book.

That's close enough. People had a dive trying to hear us. The three of us jacked the whole thing up, which is perfect. But Pearl, thanks for being with me. Me, thank you so much for, man, taking care of us, adding the little things that you do. We will see you all next week. Hit them straight, St. Louis.