CBS NFL analyst Tony Romo withdrew from the Texas State Open days after his arrest on suspicion of operating while intoxicated in Milwaukee, where bodycam footage now shows him arguing with the arresting officer and refusing a breathalyzer test.
Cascades Country Club in Tyler, Texas, confirmed to KETK-TV that the 46-year-old former Dallas Cowboys quarterback pulled out of the tournament, which was set to begin Tuesday. The club offered no explanation, and Romo has not commented publicly on either the withdrawal or the arrest that preceded it.
The arrest took place on the evening of July 23, shortly after Romo competed in the Wisconsin Amateur Championship golf tournament. Milwaukee County sheriff's deputies stopped him while he was driving southbound on Interstate 43 just after 6 p.m., AP News reported. Officers noted red, glassy eyes and the odor of alcohol. They also found unopened alcohol shooters in his bag.
Romo performed poorly on standardized field sobriety tests, according to the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office arrest report cited by AP. He was booked and released that same night, with a court appearance scheduled for September 21.
Newly released body camera video, obtained by the New York Post, shows Romo challenging the officer's suspicion during the stop. He claimed he had consumed "zero" drinks and pushed back on the premise of the stop itself.
"Because I'm coming from a golf course you think I'm drunk?"
That was Romo's response to the officer, according to the bodycam recording. When officers moved to administer a breathalyzer, Romo refused outright.
"Oh, no. We're not doing that. I've heard from all the lawyers don't ever do that. So, we're not going to do that."
The refusal itself carried legal consequences. Romo was issued a citation for "refusing to take test for intoxication after arrest," The Sun reported, citing the New York Post's account of the citation. He also insisted on calling his attorney before cooperating further with officers at the scene.
For readers unfamiliar with Wisconsin law, a first-offense OWI in the state is typically handled as a civil infraction, closer to a traffic ticket than a criminal case. The Milwaukee County District Attorney's office confirmed that Romo's case is classified as a traffic violation, not a criminal charge, Fox News reported.
A first offense generally carries a fine of $150 to $300 under Wisconsin statute, Just The News noted. That relatively light penalty stands in contrast to the reputational weight the incident now carries for a broadcaster heading into his tenth season in the CBS booth.
Earlier on the day of his arrest, Romo had spoken to a Milwaukee television station about his dual passions for football and golf.
"I'm competitive in both [golf and football], I'm just better at football. It's the challenge of it. It's as tough as you're gonna play."
Hours later, deputies pulled him over on I-43.
Romo had played in the Texas State Open nine times before this year's edition. He is also a three-time winner at the American Century Championship, the celebrity golf event held annually at Lake Tahoe. Golf has been a serious second pursuit for Romo since he retired from the NFL in 2016 after a 14-year career spent entirely with the Cowboys, a career that began when he went undrafted ahead of the 2003 season and signed with Dallas as a free agent.
His withdrawal from the Tyler tournament removes him from public view at a moment when the arrest details are still unfolding. CBS has declined to comment on the arrest, according to AP, though the New York Post reported that the network has no plans to fire Romo. Whether he steps back from public appearances beyond this tournament remains an open question.
No statement has come from Romo or his representatives addressing the arrest, the citation, or the bodycam footage. His September 21 court date will arrive just as the NFL regular season is getting underway, the same season in which Romo is set to call games as CBS's lead analyst.
Several questions hang over the case. The arrest report references poor performance on field sobriety tests, but Romo's blood alcohol level is unknown precisely because he refused chemical testing. Whether prosecutors pursue additional consequences for that refusal, or whether the civil citation is the end of the legal matter, will likely not become clear until the September hearing.
CBS's silence is its own kind of answer. Networks rarely volunteer comment on employee legal troubles unless forced to, and a civil traffic infraction in Wisconsin gives the network room to wait. But bodycam footage of a lead broadcaster telling a deputy he won't take a breathalyzer because "all the lawyers" say not to is the kind of clip that lives forever online, regardless of what a court eventually decides.
Accountability doesn't wait for a verdict, and neither does the court of public opinion that Romo will face every Sunday this fall.
