Matt Lauer’s ‘Golf Weekends’ Took a Toll on His Marriage

Matt Lauer's marriage was on the rocks from the start — with suspicious Annette Roque blaming "Today" cohost Bryant Gumbel for stealing her husband away for "golf trips" that had her seething!

Annette was still a newlywed when Matt and Bryant began to disappear for weekend trips to New York and Florida. Things reportedly got really rough in 2000 when Matt announced he was taking off to Florida after Annette had made plans for the couple. "I had something very special planned," she reportedly told her husband, "and now it's ruined!"

Annette wasn't just worried about Matt's golf addiction, though. Her husband's weekends with his former coworker began just as Bryant was divorcing June Baranco — with the news star being blasted in court papers as a "serial adulterer!"

Insiders had told The National ENQUIRER that Bryant — who had moved on from "Today" in 1997 — would often meet other women during golfing holidays. "Annette sees Matt becoming more like Bryant," reported a source, "scheduling time away from her whenever he feels like it."

But the insider added that Matt was already taking steps to keep the peace, saying: "Matt's best bet is to start a family with his bride as he promised. Only then will Annette stop focusing on his golf trips." And, sure enough, Annette was soon pregnant with her first of three children!

Things were never quite the same in Annette's marriage, however. She even filed for divorce in 2006, citing "cruel and inhuman" conduct by Matt dating back to 2001.

Matt's alleged affairs on and off the set of "Today" — plus his sick office sex antics — still caught up with him. Former coworker Ann Curry even recently went public about her own years on "Today" with Matt and Bryant. The fired newswoman said the show had a "climate of verbal harassment," and Ann was "not surprised" by Lauer's sex scandals.