This was a post I originally authored quite some time ago when the first rumors of an NBC-Comcast Merger went public.  Now that the deal has been done and is awaiting regulatory approval, I thought it might be good to bring it back up here.

Discussions have apparently been ongoing between Comcast and General Electric about completing a merger-spinoff of the NBC Universal programming unit and Comcast's cable networks.  Comcast would own an initial 51% stake in this new organization in exchange for absorbing some $12 billion in NBC Universal debt. 

The end result would be a company that owns many cable networks and - the 800 pound gorilla in the room - the NBC broadcast network.

Despite the odds of the deal being pretty slim at this point, what the deal would mean for golf fans could be pretty significant.

Today, the PGA Tour has two network partners - the aforementioned NBC and CBS - for its tournaments.  It also has a fifteen year deal with Comcast's Golf Channel to broadcast the Tour.  In a world where this NBComcast exists, the PGA Tour could create some real synergies by leaving CBS out in the cold. 

The PGA Tour and NBComcast could do for golf what ESPN does for every little thing that they broadcast.  The networks of NBComcast could promote golf constantly on air, on the Web, and anywhere they could reach.  Golf Channel might be able to broadcast its content on their network, NBC, their regional sports networks, and Versus.

Holy cow - Versus could become a viable channel that people want to watch for something other than the NHL.  And it would actually make sense that the NHL be broadcast on Versus and NBC, being a part of the same company.

They wouldn't have to show the same MMA fights from World Extreme Cagefighting every night.  Versus might even have a sports highlights show.  Can a man dream that Versus could become the competitor to ESPN that we have all been dreaming of for a decade-plus?

Golf Channel broadcasts could be anchored by Dan Hicks, instead of Kelly Tilghman.  Tilghman could move to the LPGA Tour, which also has a new, lengthy agreement with Golf Channel.  The LPGA Tour will need a solid voice to usher in a new era on Golf Channel, and Tilghman could do that.  And the LPGA could be shown live on Versus, with tape-delayed broadcasts on Golf Channel.  (Or vice versa.)  The days of the Nationwide Tour on at 2am could be put behind us.

Johnny Miller could be on TV a whole lot more often.  Or, even better, Nick Faldo and Johnny Miller could be a part of a three man booth that would make the Faldo-Zinger booth look like Lanny Wadkins' tenure.  Imagine the fireworks.  (Speaking of which, can we stop referring to the Faldo-Zinger-Tirico team in cult terms?  Every time Faldo and Zinger appear in the same booth, it's a press release.  They were great, but that's done now.)

NBC Sports' website might become half-decent instead of just being the home of Pro Football Talk.  Versus' website might actually have some original content on it, instead of just reminding hockey fans that are DirecTV subscribers how much they're missing.  Golf Channel's Web presence - already vastly improved in the last eighteen months - could become even stronger and get more exposure with NBC Sports.

This NBComcast idea isn't half bad.  I mean, we might see way more of Johnny Miller than we would like, but the end result could be pretty great for fans of all golf tours.