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When you think about the Masters broadcast, the first thought that comes to mind is Jim Nantz welcoming you to Augusta National saying ‘hello friends.’ Sure, Nantz calls NFL and March Madness games as well, but sitting atop his impressive resume is his history of calling the Masters.
Nantz has been on the call at Augusta since 1986 making this year’s unique November Masters the 35th of his career.
Usually, when you do something for 35 years you get tired of it, but when that certain something is being the voice of one of the greatest sporting events on the planet it’s a bit of a different story.
Nantz, who is 61-years-old, had previously talked about wanting to call 50 Masters for CBS before ultimately hanging it up. That would put him on the call through 2035, when he’ll be 75-years-old.
“I used to joke around in speaking engagements: I know my retirement date already. God willing, my health stays well, and CBS willing, that April 8, 2035, would be the way I would love to close out my career,” he told Front Office Sports.”
While that may have been his previous plan, now he has his sights well beyond calling just 50 Masters. Nantz isn’t thinking about retirement at all at the moment.
“But here we are all of a sudden and that’s now well within sight. I’m feeling really young. Got a couple of young kids who are 4 and 6 years old. That date is way too close for me to be talking about retirement. So I would like to push it out for another, who knows, several years at least.”
Nantz certainly hasn’t missed a beat in the broadcast booth and you’d be hard-pressed to find any fan of the Masters say they’d like to see a change in that position anytime soon.
A Masters without Nantz transporting us to Augusta National or not doing the honors in Butler Cabin with the champion would be a strange, strange sight.