BLAINE, Minn. — Kevin Kisner can laugh about it now, but in the moment, he did what any rational human would do when a bat swoops into your workspace mid-broadcast – he ducked for cover.

“I still can’t get over that people were making fun of me for that,” Kisner said with a wry grin, recalling the viral moment from NBC’s Open Championship coverage. “I was making fun of Dan (Hicks), who reacted in the weirdest way ever, while I was just hiding from the bat – what you should do because they have rabies. People were saying I’m not an outdoorsman. I was like, actually, I’m showing you how much smarter I am than most people by hiding from it.”

The clip ricocheted around social media, the perfect distillation of Kisner’s persona: Quick with a quip, irreverently unpolished in the best way possible, and always unafraid to call it as he sees it. That blunt authenticity is precisely why his work in the NBC booth has been such a hit – he’s a refreshing counterweight in an oft-buttoned-up golf world defined by decorum and restraint.

But between dodging bats in Northern Ireland and cracking jokes from a broadcast tower, Kisner has been quietly doing something else, too: playing well.

The 41-year-old has spent much of this season fighting his game, enduring a stretch of nine straight missed cuts that had many wondering if he was approaching the end of the road inside the ropes. But he’s finally shown signs of life. Returning stateside for the 3M Open after spending the past two weeks on air for the Genesis Scottish Open and The Open Championship, Kisner posted a 4-under 67 at TPC Twin Cities – a continuation of the form he’d found earlier this month at the ISCO Championship, where he logged his first top-10 finish since December 2022 and only his second made cut all season.

So, what changed? In typical Kisner fashion, he says it's nothing overly complicated. He credits a spur-of-the-moment switch to a claw grip on the putter – “I don’t know why it works, but it feels nice” – and, perhaps more importantly, the release of self-imposed pressure.

“I really just wanted to come back and show myself that I could still do it,” Kisner said. “The last few weeks have showed me that I can. I just want to get in the hunt one more time.”

It’s a curious liminal phase of his career. Kisner is playing on a career money exemption, a safety net reserved for guys whose resumes and longevity have earned them the right to keep going, but he’s also spending more and more time with a headset on. He knows the FedExCup Playoffs aren’t a realistic target this season, and he’s already slotted to help call them for NBC if his run doesn’t extend. And paradoxically, that lack of pressure has unlocked a liberating sense of freedom.

“I see the stress the other guys have with the Playoffs looming,” he said. “Me? I’m just playing for myself. If I play well, great. If not, I’ll be in the booth calling it and loving that, too.”

That dual existence – half competitor, half commentator – has given him a kind of house-money mentality. Every good round feels like a bonus, and every time he’s in contention is an unexpected cherry on top. And if you ask him what’s motivating him now, the answer is simple: the chance at a win.

“Not really anything else,” he said. “I just want to get in the hunt one more time.”

For a guy whose last win came at the 2021 Wyndham Championship, there’s no illusion of a grand reinvention or an all-out comeback Kisner isn't grinding toward some elusive long-term revival. He's simply sqeezing out the last drops of juice from a career well-lived. He's chasing one more Sunday that matters, one more back-nine with the stakes humming at his feet.

Maybe Kisner doesn’t need to win again. Maybe the dual life he’s carved as a half-player, half-analyst is enough. But weeks like this one in Minnesota, where the putter heats up and the game suddenly cooperates, make you wonder if there's still another run in him. But no matter what, he’s just happy to be rolling it well again, enjoying the booth banter, and proving that sometimes the smartest play really is to hide from the bat.