Golf broadcasts are used to dealing with hot-mic profanity from the golfers, but Smylie Kaufman graced us with the rare announcer F-bomb.

During NBC’s coverage of the Open Championship on USA Network Friday afternoon, play-by-play announcer Dan Hicks sent it to on-course reporter Smylie Kaufman as Jon Rahm was putting for a long birdie.

HOT MIC ALERT! 🚨 🚨 🚨

Players aren’t the only ones dropping F-bombs. It’s reached the announcer’s booth, too.#TheOpen pic.twitter.com/S05FoXpIjO

— Jason Krump (@JasonKrump) July 18, 2025

“This is one of the more difficult holes today, this hole location…” said Kaufman. And as challenging as the hole may have been for Rahm and the other golfers, it must have been equally difficult for Kaufman. Because the next thing he said was a hushed, but audible “what the f***?”

About 15 minutes later, Mike Tirico was tasked with issuing an apology for Kaufman and NBC, where he appeared to blame the foreign headsets at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland, which apparently don’t work quite the same as the ones back home in the United States.

Mike Tirico issues an apology.

“Technical issues with our microphones…” pic.twitter.com/7xVWcM8cA3

— Jason Krump (@JasonKrump) July 18, 2025

“Earlier we had some technical issues with our microphones,” Tirico said. “When you come over here, our on-course reporter, sometimes the headsets don’t work the same way they do back home. Because of that, it led to some language getting through on the air that shouldn’t have gotten through. So, we just want take the time to apologize for that comment getting through back home.”

An apology would have sufficed, even without the explanation. But maybe Tirico is right and the F-bomb really was due to those foreign headsets. They drive on the opposite side of the road in Ireland; perhaps they put the mute button on the opposite side of their headsets.

For his part Kaufman offered an apology on social media afterward.

Hey yall! I made a double bogey at 15 today with a bizarre audio situation. Sorry about that as I clearly didn’t know I was on air 😳! Apologies and a lesson learned! pic.twitter.com/psCDnZfR2m

— Smylie Kaufman (@SmylieKaufman10) July 18, 2025