Jim “Bones” McKay working for the Golf Channel during the 2017 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. | Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
With Justin Thomas not playing this week, Jim “Bones” McKay will return to the network he once worked for at the Mexico Open.
The revolving door for NBC Sports’ lead analyst position continues to go around and around.
The network will have Jim “Bones” McKay in the booth this week at the Mexico Open at Vidanta, which Golfweek first reported.
It will be the first time an active caddy serves as a broadcaster for a PGA Tour event, as McKay currently loops full-time for Justin Thomas. He has been on Thomas’s bag since 2021, which includes Thomas’s 2022 PGA Championship triumph at Southern Hills.
But McKay is no stranger to broadcasting.
He served as an on-course reporter for NBC and the Golf Channel from 2017-2021, in between his caddying stints for Phil Mickelson and Thomas.
During that span, McKay received tremendous praise for his knowledge and insight, lending a perspective not often heard by golf fans and viewers.
Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images
Justin Thomas and Jim McKay discuss how to play a shot during the 2023 Hero World Challenge.
Surely, many fans will welcome McKay back with open arms.
For Thursday’s opening round of the Mexico Open, McKay will return to his previous role as an on-course reporter, walking the course alongside featured groups. Then, for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday’s telecasts, McKay will join host Dan Hicks and veteran Brad Faxon in the booth.
NBC Sports has had numerous personalities fill the void left by Paul Azinger, who departed the network following the Ryder Cup.
At The Sentry and the WM Phoenix Open, PGA Tour fan favorite Kevin Kisner sat alongside host Dan Hicks in the lead analyst chair. His calm, charming demeanor, along with his terrific sense of humor, served the broadcast well.
Brandel Chamblee jumped into the fray, too, serving as the lead analyst at The American Express, which saw amateur Nick Dunlap capture the title.
Paul McGinley and Curt Byrum have sat in that seat, too, lending their brilliant expertise to NBC’s audience.
But McKay’s role with NBC Sports will be short-lived. With Justin Thomas taking the week off, McKay had a break in his schedule and thus opted to help his former employer. All signs indicate that this will be a one-week gig.
This is not necessarily new, per se. McKay also lent a helping hand last year at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur and the KitchenAid Senior PGA Championship.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
