THE MODERATOR: For the 70th consecutive year, CBS Sports is set to broadcast the Masters Tournament from Augusta National Golf Club. Coverage is highlighted by 18-hole coverage on Saturday and Sunday, April 12 and 13, from noon to 7:00 p.m. eastern time. Masters Live, featuring full-day streaming coverage of the 2025 Masters Tournament will offer four channels of live action available on Paramount+, CBSSports.com and the CBS Sports app for mobile devices.
The 2025 Masters Live coverage schedule begins on Monday with Masters on the Range. Coverage of featured groups, Amen Corner and holes 15 and 16 start Thursday morning. CBS Sports' weekend programming will offer five Masters specials, including "We Need to Talk" on Saturday, and on Sunday Jim Nantz remembers Augusta, the legend of Bernhard Langer, along with a reflection of Jordan Spieth's 2015 Masters victory hosted by Trevor Immelman.
On the call today to discuss all this and preview the Masters are David Berson, the president and CEO of CBS Sports; Sellers Shy, the coordinating producer of golf on CBS; our host Jim Nantz; lead analyst Trevor Immelman; and on-course reporter Dottie Pepper.
We'll go first to David with an opening comment.
DAVID BERSON: Thank you. I appreciate it. I'll be brief here. Thrilled to be here with everyone. It's such a great time of year at CBS Sports. We'll head to San Antonio for the Final Four this weekend and head straight to Augusta from there.
It's our 70th consecutive year broadcasting the Masters, the longest running sports event on any one network and something we're very proud of. We're also very proud to be this will be Jim Nantz's 40th Masters. His first was in 1986 when Jack won his 18th and final major, some way to start. There's no better golf announcer than Jim. He lives and breathes the sport. He is the voice of golf, and he leads the way for us as we continue to set the standard for coverage of the sport.
Alongside Jim will be the Masters champion Trevor Immelman wearing appropriately a green shirt today. He's calling his third Masters as CBS's lead analyst. Trevor is so well-respected, brings tons of credibility to our coverage, and love seeing his voice continue to get bigger and bigger in the world of golf.
Dottie will be able to call her 10th Masters and sixth as an on-course reporter. She brings such fantastic insight and perspective inside the ropes and is widely revered at her craft.
Last year marked Verne Lundquist's final Masters, where he called the action from the 16th hole. First, thank you to everyone here to helped make his farewell so special and memorable.
We're excited that Frank Nobilo will be in the tower at 16 this year. This will be Frank's 11th Masters as an integral part of our team, and you can look forward to his typical great insight and analysis now also at the famed 16th hole.
Sellers will spearhead our coverage for the 15th time as our lead producer and 29th overall as part of our team. His first was in '97, another great way to start. He is a tremendous leader for our golf coverage. So much respect for the work he does continuing to elevate our team and our coverage.
There are some exciting enhancements this year as we continue to look to innovate while honoring tradition. We have five additional live hours across CBS and Paramount+. Both Saturday and Sunday we'll have full coverage from noon to 7:00 eastern with our main team doing all of these hours.
Both days will start with two hours of Paramount+ before transitioning to CBS and Paramount+ at 2:00, and of course, the usual expansive coverage across digital platforms, as well. Jen touched on a whole lot of that.
Augusta National announced yesterday a new social show, "Mornings at the Masters." We're proud to work with them and the show to engage a new audience. The show will air Wednesday through Sunday at 9:00 a.m. eastern on Masters.com and Masters YouTube page.
While our 70th Masters is shaping up to be another special one, we cannot wait to get to Augusta. I know you all want to talk to Jim and Trevor and Dottie and Sellers, so let's get to it.
Q. I know someone was going to ask, might as well be me, let's talk about Rory. Trevor, I'll start with you. Can you tell me why this year is going to be different than all these other years in the past?
TREVOR IMMELMAN: I'm not so sure it's going to be different. It sure has been a roller coaster ride for him through the years at the Masters. We all know this is his 11th shot at trying to complete the Career Grand Slam, which is the most elite list in our sport. I'm not sure he's ever come in in better form. He's got two big-time wins at Pebble Beach and then at THE PLAYERS, and even this last weekend closing out with a 64 on Sunday to be in the top 5 in Houston.
His game just seems to be really firing on all cylinders. I think the swing changes he made last fall have bedded in. I think that along with the softer golf ball to launch the wedges and short irons lower has been a great change for him. The distance control has improved dramatically. The putting stroke looks good. Everything is trending in the right direction.
But this might be the longest week of his life here that he's about to face, as everybody starts talking about it. The fact that he's in great form actually even heightens the pressure in my opinion.
He said that his coach was coming in. Hopefully they can get themselves in a little cocoon and stay focused and in a way relaxed, as well, because it's going to be a very mentally and emotionally taxing week for him as he gets on property.
I'll tell you what, if he gets off to a nice start, could you just imagine the excitement and the energy watching on TV and around the grounds at Augusta National if he's near the lead come Sunday. It's going to be awesome. But we'll have to see what the pressure is like. Seven top 10s there, but the last few years hasn't quite been his best.
Q. Dottie?
DOTTIE PEPPER: I would agree with what Trevor just said. Rory has used the word "complete" throughout the past few weeks talking about how his game has been more complete than it's ever been. Length has never been a problem. The golf ball I think has helped the short iron issue, so there's been a minor tweak in his technique with that sort of club in his hand. Numbers are trending in that 2012-2014 area where he had no weaknesses.
But I think we're kind of being a little foolish if we don't address the fact that he brought up there's a physical issue. He's got some elbow soreness, and there wasn't a whole lot of digging that went into it. There wasn't a whole lot of probing about when it started, what he's been going through, what the treatment plan is, but I think we need to kind of keep that in mind as we go into what is going to be a very pressure-packed week, and two separate individual trips to Augusta National to try to tone things down next week.
Q. With the storms that rolled through Augusta in the fall, I'm curious if any trees lost, did that force you to change your approach in terms of camera placement? And then also with some of those trees being lost, I imagine the wind patterns specifically around Amen Corner might be a little different this year. Any added technological things that might enhance coverage of that kind of around the wind patterns and things like that?
SELLERS SHY: Yeah, I'll let the club and the chairman speak on how they've managed the course. However, we have built kind of a list over the last two or three years that we continue to address, opportunities that present themselves on the course, and frankly it doesn't have anything to do with some of the damage that was done.
We're excited about this. We're excited about a few spots at 13 tee, maybe 11 green. We don't want to peel back the curtain too much for you, but 12 green. This is something that we have a plan that we've put together for a couple years and continue to implement as appropriate.
Q. Sellers, what happens with Amen Corner now with Frank moving to 16?
SELLERS SHY: David, do you want to address that?
DAVID BERSON: I can touch on this. The rest of our team is intact, so there's not much change, but there will be some movement of things. Frank will still be doing 11 and you'll hear Mr. Nantz and Mr. Immelman at 12.
Q. Have any of you been to Augusta National since last year?
DOTTIE PEPPER: I have.
Q. I'm curious what your thoughts are on what happened with Helene and what you're looking for in terms of possible impact on how the course plays, either wind or maybe certain tee shots. Is there anything in particular you've got an eye on?
TREVOR IMMELMAN: I was fortunate enough to play there in late January on a beautiful day, early 60s, not too much wind, and thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity. I think there are going to be some areas that will absolutely look different to the patrons and to all of our viewers on TV. Behind 11, the bridge -- the Hogan bridge just absolutely pops now when you're playing that second shot with them having lost those couple trees behind the 11th green. Behind 15, as well, there's a couple less trees. I think that could be interesting from a wind swirling perspective, from a depth perception perspective on the second and on the third if you have to lay up at the par-5. Then to the right of the 9th seemed to be thinned out because of the devastation from the storm.
I think that's going to present some more room for the players if they bail out into the pine straw and the pine trees. But also should allow some what I like to call "hero shots" and some opportunities for players to really be able to hit low hooks, low slices around these trees, try and run it up that hill up on to or near the green at 9, so that might be quite exciting for everybody watching around that green.
All in all, when I played late January, the course was just absolutely magnificent. It got me even more so excited than what I ordinarily am. But I think it's important for us to make sure that front of mind we remember and bear in mind what a tough time that area has had, the devastation that that town and the surrounding areas had, and keep those people in our thoughts as we enjoy this 89th Masters.
DOTTIE PEPPER: I would say the same. Another area I noticed when I was there last Tuesday and that's between 5 and 6. That steep hillside is definitely different, and I think you may see second shots at 5 play a little different. The tee shot at 6 may be a little more exposed as it comes through what's now a larger sort of valley through there, and if you do play -- get a day where it's more into the wind at 16, I think it'll be more magnified than it has been in the past.
But I would say, looking at the weather this week -- when I was there last week, the deciduous trees hadn't really started to pop, hadn't started to leaf a lot, and the azaleas were much in that same sort of waiting for nature to catch up, and it's catching up this week. They've gotten some rain yesterday. It's going to be very warm this week, and things will start to fill in, so I don't think it will be as jarring for some people when they get there next week as it would be if they'd seen it in the last couple weeks. Nature is powerful, and it's starting to happen.
Q. Jim, heading into year two now for you not doing the NCAA tournament, I'm curious, are you crafting any sort of new routine during Masters week, and do you feel that last year not having that added work impacted you at the Masters in any way?
JIM NANTZ: That's a good question. I was prepared for this to be a new approach to Augusta this year, and the plan was to get there on Sunday before. Then all of a sudden my University of Houston basketball team went on a roll and found its way to San Antonio, and I have to be there for that Saturday. That has brought an abrupt change to the current itinerary.
If we so happen to be fortunate enough to defeat Duke and play Monday night, I will be right back to my old schedule again, and that is to fly out after the game Monday night or at the crack of dawn on Tuesday morning for Augusta. So here we go all over again.
Q. David, you're well aware that you now compete against significant streaming companies. We just saw the Women's World Cup plans for Netflix. Obviously they're heavily invested in the NFL now on Christmas. So is Amazon. Where would you put your level of concern at an Amazon or a Netflix or an Apple TV trying to come in and swipe the Masters from CBS?
DAVID BERSON: I love our portfolio across the board. I love that we continue to deliver the viewership that we have. We have partners for decades and decades. As we've said, this is our 70th Masters. We take absolutely nothing for granted. The folks you're talking to on this call are part of the reason we do it year in and year out as well as we do it.
So you're getting a Switzerland answer that you expected, but I'm not concerned here. We'll continue to worry about ourselves and manage these relationships as well as we do and put on the product that we do and deliver the great viewership that we do, and the rest takes care of itself.
I'm not concerned about that with respect to the Masters, but I appreciate your question, and that you gave me the runway to Switzerland there.
Q. Of all the different enhancements that have come to live golf over the last handful of years, what do you feel are the most impactful, and is there anything new that you guys are debuting this week or next week?
SELLERS SHY: It's a great question. We've been very deliberate, very methodical on all these enhancements. I don't want to leave any of our partners, vendors out that we're so proud of. What has stood out, obviously the constant leader board has been a mainstay, not only on our network into the Masters but on every golf broadcast since our transition.
The drone clearly has given us a perspective that is sometimes eye popping, and that's been an incredible enhancement to our overall coverage.
Then I'll just keep going. Our complement of flight cams, atlases add depth of feel, cinematic feel, camera.
I think that's just a handful of what we're very proud of as our complement at the Masters, and frankly all season long.
One thing I'm excited about, as I told Josh, was an enhancement at 13. I think you're going to see a different angle. I think Trevor may be able to step in a little bit more with a little analysis, and it's going to be an exciting angle. We're trying to immerse ourselves not only on the court but even specifically at Amen Corner, so I think it's going to be an exciting time for the viewer around 11, 12, 13 this year, and I'll just leave it at that. Thanks for the question.
Q. For Sellers or David, CBS and Augusta National obviously have a pretty unique setup when it comes to their media rights. Could you speak to what those conversations are like on a yearly basis from the perspective of how the tournament broadcast is presented to the viewers? What is that give and take, and what aspects of the presentation typically come up?
DAVID BERSON: I'll start, Sellers, just on the relationship as a whole and then you can get into the specifics of the production stuff. I appreciate the question. I mentioned a few times here, this is our 70th Masters, so you don't just do that because you do any one particular thing good.
This relationship is super deep. While we broadcast this event over the course of a four-day stretch, if you will, we are constantly in touch with the folks at Augusta National, our partners, our friends around the entire year to plan for this. The relationship is extremely, extremely deep.
None of us take for granted one bit of this relationship. I think we all know it's far bigger than any one of us, and we're lucky to be the stewards during this moment in time to just make it even better, and we're thrilled that we can continue to honor tradition yet innovate, and that's something that Augusta National does so well.
We love doing it with them, so this is not something you just kind of roll out each and every year but every year we're looking at every little angle, seeing how we can do it better, but it really is rooted in tremendous trust and respect that is far beyond those of us on this call. That goes back generations. There's just a tremendous respect and love of the game together.
So when you're doing it together like that, special stuff can really happen, and Sellers and his team put on every year just along those lines. That's kind of how the relationship works and how deep it really is, and that probably flows nicely from the question Richard asked earlier about the partnership we have. I'll pass it off to Sellers who can talk about the specifics of the production itself.
SELLERS SHY: I think you said it perfectly, but our leader, our voice is Jim Nantz. No one has more respect for the game and the history of the game than Jim Nantz, and I'd probably say that about the club and Chairman Ridley. You led me right down the path that I was hoping someone would have led us, which is the anniversaries this year are probably as good of a list as you could ask, from Gene Sarazen to my mentor, Dr. Cary Middlecoff in 1955; 1965, Jack; '75, 50 years ago, one of the greatest Masters memories in the history of the game with Jack winning over Weiskopf and Miller; '85, Langer, where we have a show on Sunday; '95, Crenshaw; '05 Tiger's chip-in; and 2015, Jordan, where we have another show.
We are immersed not only in how we attempt to see the Masters as partners evolve but also immersed in its history. We have no better leader than Jim teeing us up and taking us on this historic journey together.
Q. The big question is of course it's the Scottie Scheffler-Rory McIlroy show, so I'm wondering if you guys would speak on that and also weigh in if you guys are leaning towards taking Scottie and Rory or the field.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: What do you think, Jim?
JIM NANTZ: Well, I think that it sets up to be headlined by those two. I really do. I think you have to begin there. But there are layers to it, and I really just take a lot off of what happens early in the year. It's often a harbinger of what's to come at Augusta.
You look at the way the season started, with a big international presence in the win column, whether it's Sepp Straka, Thomas Detry, Ludvig Åberg, Rory at Pebble Beach. The international brigade is I think really primed to do well. Even names that I didn't rattle off like a Shane Lowry.
I just sense strength there. Maybe it is Rory. I didn't weigh in on that earlier. I have really positive vibes about him this time around. We know the pressure is immense, but hey, a couple years ago when he was defending the PGA Tour, became pretty much the spokesman for what he believed was right and just about the game and the PGA Tour, believe me, there was tremendous pressure heaped on his shoulders to carry that and to continue to be a world-class players, and he handled it well.
I think he may have actually benefitted from that. I think he learned from that. Now with all of the technical things that Dottie and Trev talked about, equipment, a wider range of golf shots that's in his arsenal, I think Rory is going to do really well, and I think the international contingent is also primed to make a statement here.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: Jim makes a perfect point there, a brilliant point. I'd throw Hideki Matsuyama's name in there, as well, who already has a win and is a Masters champion, so he knows exactly what it takes to be able to win this tournament.
Min Woo Lee is another one who just got a great win, his first PGA Tour win in Houston. He may be a little lightly run for major championships and Masters experience. From that standpoint, we'll have to see how that plays out.
But going back to your original question with the Scheffler and the McIlroy show, it sure does feel like that right now. But it's going to be fascinating for us to watch how it unfolds from Thursday onward. The draw, the weather, how the golf course presents itself with the weather that's going to be in and out between now and the Thursday. There's so many things that could still take place that could throw one of these guys off.
Shucks, you could hit a poor tee shot down the 2nd and hit a pull draw down into the creek on the left side, and all of a sudden you're struggling from there.
That's one of the many reasons we love this tournament so much is there's so many areas where it's on a knife's edge, and you're leaning forward on your seat trying to see exactly what's going to happen next in anticipation of what's going to happen next.
These guys sure do have the pedigree. But it is a long way from now until Masters Sunday, never mind from that Thursday until the Sunday. It's going to be great to be along for the ride with my teammates and see how it unfolds.
DOTTIE PEPPER: Well, I think you've picked what are the two hardest sports to handicap, and that would be golf and horse racing. You can go on form, but until the first shot is fired and you managed to get yourself all the way around to turn 4, it doesn't really become super apparent.
Trevor made a great point about the weather. The long-term forecast has rain in the forecast on Friday night week, and we have a very large field, one of the largest in recent years. So you could get a pretty distinct late-early advantage or disadvantage, so that is certainly parts of what could happen.
Without a doubt, the internationals have been the story for the first third of this year. I think perhaps we're realizing how much the torn meniscus was a part of Åberg's second half last year because he did not perform well the final rounds as we got to the second half of the year and how impressive he was to come in as a Masters rookie last year and take it as deep as he did.
But I do see Scottie rolling into form right on time. Last week he was a couple of -- really a trend of putts missing low right if you look at his whole week. If that turns around, he wins in Houston. So he's now twice Houston coming into the Masters, two straight years either second or tied second. So has he not won yet this year? Yes. Was it off to a rocky start because of a freak accident and surgery? Absolutely.
But I think he's figured out his way to get into the Masters, how to manage the week, and Rory is figuring out that very same thing.
I would say -- I had this discussion with Doug Ferguson earlier today, and it was how the time seems to work against you, though, the longer it takes for you to get over a big achievement opportunity, so whether it's winning the Grand Slam -- so we've got Jordan now. We've been talking about that at the PGA for a long time. I equated it to the LPGA, Pat Bradley going into Hall of Fame by winning two events right away. She got right on the cusp and won the next week in '91, and it was just a huge relief, and then it took other players so much longer, and you could feel that anxiety and the anticipation and a little bit of panic and trying to reevaluate and micromanage where you may not -- you may not have done as well as you wanted to or how do I change this.
So I think this is a really important week for Rory, but yes, things are lining up.
But again, horse racing and golf. You just kind of throw it up in the air and see where it lands.
Q. Sellers and David, I was wondering if you guys would provide some more information about how you came on Frank as the 16th hole announcer, if there's anything particular about him that kind of stuck out.
DAVID BERSON: I'll say a couple words, and Sellers, you can add to it. As I opened with, Frank has been a part of our team for over a decade. He's an incredible analyst, a huge part of our team. He deserves this opportunity. Frank has been doing Amen Corner for a long time. I'm thrilled that he gets to be a much more integral part of the latter portion of our coverage now. He deserves it. We're thrilled for him.
Sellers, you can add, as well.
SELLERS SHY: Yeah, there's no one more experienced with both, not only in golf as a broadcaster but also as a former player. He's in the New Zealand Hall of Fame. He was right there in 1995 or '96, he finished fourth, and he has an incredible balance, and he's earned that right to be on that hole, and there's now a real nice, nice balance that I think everyone is going to be very, very happy with.
Q. Sellers, as it relates to the trees, do you have any plans to show before and afters to give viewers a perspective?
SELLERS SHY: That is not in the plans. We're covering the tournament the way it is presented to us and the way the club would like to present it. So that is not in the cards, no.
Q. Trevor, from the 17 years you've played, the 3rd hole hasn't changed but like one time, and that was a really long time ago. Has it changed the way the players are playing it? Is it now just blast and go instead of any thought given to it?
TREVOR IMMELMAN: I would say on a calm day or with some wind helping, there's not too much thought to the tee shot anymore for these players. You're looking at about 275, 280 to cover those set of bunkers down the left-hand side, so the majority of them have got that in problem. So if it's calm, even if the hole location is on the left, which is the more tricky, we're still seeing guys blasting it down there just short of the upslope and then playing 15 or 20 feet out to the right of the hole from about 60 or 70 yards.
Now, when the wind blows into, at that point they're going to have to make a decision. But for the most part, guys are stepping up there with driver and trying to get it all the way down, purely because, as you well know, a shorter club, you're going to be able to generate more spin, more spin means more control, and that's what they're always after?
Q. Jim, just out of curiosity, if Scottie were to win again, what would you say about him?
JIM NANTZ: I have no idea. If you have any ideas, pass them along.
Q. That's why I was asking you.
JIM NANTZ: I'd want to be in the moment. You could say the same thing about anyone. What if Rory closes out the Career Grand Slam? We've got to feel it. We've got to be there and see what the moment brings. Got to feel it. But thank you.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: I would have been very disappointed if he told you because he doesn't even tell me minutes before he says it. I'm always surprised. So that would have really upset me if he gave you that answer.
JIM NANTZ: How about, Doug, a win for the ages?
Q. I feel like I've heard that.
JIM NANTZ: Already checked that one off. Sorry.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: You can't recycle, Jim.
JIM NANTZ: Yeah, can't recycle.
By the way, hats off to Tiger today for having that whimsical moment. That was pretty good. He's having a lot of fun these days on social media. Good for him.
Q. Jim, in the 40 years that you've invested yourself in the Masters, what is the one thing more than any other that made you kind of fall in love with it? Second question is about the green jacket and its tradition and history. You've seen this 40 times. Can you just speak to its importance?
JIM NANTZ: Well, those are a couple of questions coming from different places, but thank you for them both. I just want to say, first off, that David said some very nice things at the beginning about this being my 40th and it's such an honor to be at that number alongside the great Verne Lundquist, so we're the first two to ever reach 40, and it's beyond my wildest dreams in a lot of ways.
What made me fall in love the Masters, it happened before I worked for CBS. It was the thing that really of all -- it was the impetus for me to want to have a career in broadcasting was watching and listening. I was smitten by what I saw and riveted by what I heard. The voices of my youth who broadcast the tournament in yesteryear, I was completely enraptured by everything they said, and since I was 11 years old, I wanted to be one of those voices.
Sounds like good copy. It's true. It's heartfelt. I call every Masters with an outpouring of gratefulness that I'm able to live a boyhood dream. It's what I saw in terms of the tournament, what it looked like in its history, and what I heard.
Let's see now. The green jacket ceremony is a standalone moment in sport. There's nothing else like it. Is that what you're asking about specifically, the presentation or the actual jacket itself?
Q. Yeah, the presentation, but also what that green jacket has come to mean.
JIM NANTZ: Well, it's just emblematic of excellence in golf. You've reached the highest level that's achievable in the game, just to be able to don a green jacket. Isn't it refreshing in a time in sport where all we ever hear about is money and guaranteed contracts and outrageous numbers that most people can't relate to that at all, they can't get their mind around that or process is it, in fact they're numb to it. The numbers are just -- it's fantasy to them. It's just nothing but noise and they don't pay much attention to it. When you have the Masters tournament, there's never a discussion about money, purse money, how much you win. It's about a jacket. It's about a coat that you win.
Tell me something else that compares to that. You won't come up with anything that means more than just a green jacket. In a world that is filled with NIL and guaranteed contracts and how much they get in the guarantee and all this. Playing for a green jacket. Yes, there's money involved. It's never discussed. I couldn't even tell you. I couldn't even come close to telling you what first place pays at Augusta, and I don't care. Nor do the players.
You know what it is? It's immortality in golf. You achieve it, man, you have found a place in history. It's permanence. It's forever. And it has been truly the greatest professional joy of my career is to have been at Augusta all these years.
I just might add, there was a lot said last week about a certain retirement date I think it was called. I never made that proclamation or declaration. I've said for decades that I would really like to be able to be at Augusta for the 100th playing of the Masters. There was not an attempt there to try to put a timeline on it. I've always said it with a wink in my eye and a little whimsy that if all things worked out and everybody wanted me to continue to do it, I would like to be there in 2036. I never wanted to have any attention on me and my longevity at Augusta. It is an honor beyond words.
We'll see what the good Lord has as far as plans for me. Maybe it's 2036, maybe it's beyond, maybe it's earlier than that. I don't know. I'm locked in on one thing: This edition of the Masters.
Next year, God willing, if I'm there again, I'm going to be completely in the moment. I love being in the moment. It's the greatest feeling in this business is being there and sharing it with this team and preparing every day for these shows, and every single shot that is on the air is a reflection of guys like Sellers and Steve Milton, who's not on this call, our incredible director.
It is the ultimate report card on all of us as professionals, just like it is every swing, every shot that you strike as a player as Augusta you want to be your best. It's a part of your record. I love the fact that that's the way we approach this tournament. This is our attempt to be at our very best. I can't wait to share that moment.
Just being on this call today, I'll be honest, I've been off here for -- well, since the Genesis at San Diego mid-February. I've missed this crew. That's heartfelt. It's real. We care about each other. We have fun. Just being on this call, I feel like actually the Masters is starting right here, right now. I'm super stoked. Can't wait to be back there and share it with the folks that you see here and many more that are going to be a part of it who are just as eager as I am to get to Augusta and be our best.
Q. I was taken by Fred Couples' comments a couple weeks ago about how relieved he was that he talked to the club and they welcomed him back, and then thinking about Bernhard Langer and his anniversary and stepping away, I was wondering what you think the past champions bring to the event itself, and then if there are any farewells from Augusta that stick out to you over the years that have kind of stayed with you.
JIM NANTZ: I'll take a stab at this. I was with Fred the day after he had that phone call. He got an award. He received an award in Seattle, the Seattle Sports Legends award. There's very few of those that have ever been bestowed upon a citizen of Seattle, and there were over 1,000 people who were there to see the event. This is part of what I've been doing since I was last with my golf family.
So he asked me to be there to present him. He was on such a high because he knew he was coming back to Augusta. He actually didn't know the protocol. It was unclear to him whether or not this was supposed to be the last one because he's 65. He didn't think about the fact that Bernhard is a couple years older and is going to step away this year.
It was really a sweet moment to see how much that meant to him because he's playing well. He doesn't play very often. He was the leader going into the last round last week or weekend before last out in Newport Beach. Last year he was battling a double hernia, never said anything about it until after the surgery in the summer, and he's feeling healthy now, and at age 65 he just might make a run at the cut, and that would be a great victory.
Bernhard's goodbye is a big one, and we are going to document it. Thank you, Jen, for bringing that up, on the hour preceding the national broadcast, the CBS television broadcast on Sunday.
I've been with Bernhard several places, including at his home in Florida during the NFL season, and amazing anniversary, as Sellers pointed out, of his first win in 1985, and there will be a special goodbye when he walks up presumably the 18th hole to say his goodbye, if it's at 36 holes or 72 holes we hope.
The oddest one of all time was that Jack Nicklaus's goodbye, people forget this, was on the 9th green. It's one of those years where there was weather and we had to reconfigure the starting times and use split tees, and Jack's goodbye at Augusta was on the original 18th hole, which was No. 9 when the tournament first began in 1934.
So yeah, I remember Crenshaw's being very emotional and all the family behind the green. They all are. To those that really love the game, the goodbyes and the farewells, it's touching. It's very touching.
I'm looking forward to doing justice to the moment for Bernhard Langer, and whenever that time comes for Freddy. I'm going to have a hard time with that one. Trevor, hopefully you can carry me through that moment. I hope it's a few years down the road. That will be bittersweet.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: Yeah, it'll be extremely special because of everything that Freddy has meant to the Masters. I was fortunate enough to play with him in December at the PNC, and he was still playing well. I know how excited he is to be able to go and play another Masters tournament. That was his dream as a kid, to be able to play that tournament. He has represented Masters champions and the club so beautifully and so well over the years.
I think it's one of the many amazing traditions at the Masters is for the champions to be able to come back and play. There's so many iconic moments and shots through the years that we've all watched, and when you get to see the champions play again, every time you see them, you think about the great shots that they hit when they were on their way to winning the tournament.
It's almost like taking another emotional ride down memory lane. You remember where you were when you watched that shot, where you were when you saw Tiger in '97 win his first Masters, where you were in '86 when Jack won his sixth. That was the tournament that made me fall in love with the game. It was the first time I had watched the Masters on TV in South Africa as a six- or seven-year-old kid.
So I think it's an amazing tradition. I'm excited to see all of the guys next week again. For me personally, being able to be down on the back of the 18th green watching Gary Player finish off his last Masters was something that I'll remember forever, being able to give him a hug as he walked off the green, knowing what he meant to the tournament as the first international winner, three-time champion, as one of my heroes. To be able to be there with him, for him, supporting him in that moment was something I'll never forget.
I just can't wait to get back next week, to be with my team and to reminisce with everybody, patrons that you see there every year that you get to know, people who work at the club, past champions. It's a celebration of golf every spring, and it's the best.
JIM NANTZ: I've got to add one more here, and that of course would be Arnold's farewell, which we covered in its entirety walking up the 18th. The tournament stopped posting his score, and we never put up a graphic that had what he was shooting, and when he played the 18th hole, we made the determination that we were going to let people feel like they were walking with Arnie, from the time he teed off until the time he putted out. There was not one word uttered, not one.
I was with Ken Venturi in the tower at 18 and it took a long time because what we didn't know was that Arnie was going to be shaking hands as he walked up the 18th, and he would intermittently go over to the ropes and there were friends there waiting to greet him, and it became just a long celebration.
So he putts out, we bring him down to Butler Cabin to take an interview with him, where in 2016, the year that he passed, we conducted in Butler Cabin and did the last interview that Arnold ever conducted with anyone.
But he came into the Butler Cabin, and I had been contacted by former President George H.W. Bush earlier that day, who was an old friend of Arnie's, and he just let me know, Jimmy, if you have the chance, I would love to be able to wish Arnie good luck after it's over and tell him thank you.
So we did the interview, and I dialed the magic number, and I said, yes, sir, hold on a minute. I wanted to step aside out of this, handed the phone to Arnold, and he stood there -- he played with like 10 Presidents in his lifetime, and he was tied to all Presidents, red and blue. It didn't matter. Arnie was beloved and he beloved the leadership of this country during his lifetime.
That was the first time I really saw him crack. He hung up the phone, and he had -- he couldn't even get the words out. But it was a magical day at Augusta.
DOTTIE PEPPER: It's almost as if Masters champions are sort of canonized, and the current players have zero hesitation leaning into them for little bits to try to crack the code, and they're also giving of their time and of their experience and going out and playing a practice round or getting there early and spending time even away from tournament time. That just doesn't happen other places, and certainly not to the extent that it does at Augusta National.
They're around and they're beloved, and it never ends.
Q. One for Sellers and something else for the other guys. For Sellers, is Drone Tracer with you guys this week?
SELLERS SHY: You know, we never like to show our hand. I'll let you see when everyone else does. Our complement is -- we're happy with what we have. It's been a -- we always start thinking about it after the final putt goes in the previous year.
We're happy with what we have starting on Thursday.
Q. Dottie, you mentioned that you think that the trees and plants are about to really blossom here in the next couple days. That got me thinking -- also for Trev, if you're used to playing a hole a certain way or think the wind is coming a certain way and maybe a tree is now gone but the others that were around it are still there, do you think things will stay the same maybe if enough blossoms come out, come tournament time, if that makes sense?
DOTTIE PEPPER: I think some of the gaps will definitely be filled in by the leaf-out. It was just getting started when I was there last Tuesday. But what I do think is that the practice rounds are going to have a different focus because some of the natural targets, they may not be there the way they have been. So I think there's going to be a different focus, a different awareness about what start lines are. So there will be something to really kind of pay attention to.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: Yeah, there's definitely a possibility of that. It will for sure have the players' attention. Their attention will be heightened to exactly how the course is playing and if there are opportunities for the wind to be swirling in different directions, and so just another reason for them to really be paying attention in the practice rounds. I'm sure the caddies will be on their toes, as well, trying to make sure that they have everything lined up.
Then once the tournament gets going and that adrenaline gets ramped up, that's when things really start to get exciting.
One of the reasons why Augusta National is so difficult when you're playing in the Masters is the areas that you're hitting to on approach are so tiny, these little shelves and portions in the greens are so tiny, and when you're playing from an uneven lie in the fairway, maybe the ball is slightly above your feet or a downhill lie to a small area like that, any type of doubt that creeps in, whether it be, gosh, is that wind still going to be the same as what I'm used to it being the last few years, or how is it going to be affected by the elements right now, that's what really causes havoc for these players is that little shred of doubt. It's just going to be another one of the many great storylines for us to watch here in the practice rounds and then as the tournament develops, particularly hearing from players after the round might be quite fascinating to hear their insights after playing and see what they think.
DOTTIE PEPPER: Rory even mentioned 16 because of some of the trees that are no longer there. It's a darker part of the golf course, especially as we're finishing towards 7:00 p.m. eastern. He feels like it might be a little bit easier because the shadows won't be as big of a factor. Those are the things that could change a little bit, and it doesn't necessarily always make them more difficult.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: I agree. 13 is another opportunity for that to happen for sure.
Q. Trevor, Jim was waxing poetic a minute ago about the green jacket and all that it means. I'm wondering if you can think back to 2008. How much thought did you put into your Sunday outfit, and is it healthy or is it imperative for a guy to envision how it might pair with the green jacket, or do guys not want to go there for fear of jinxing their chances or something?
TREVOR IMMELMAN: Yeah, that's a good question. For me personally, I did not pay any attention to it at all. I've been with Nike throughout my whole career, and they do the scripting well in advance, and you approve it well in advance. Then you just see how the week plays out.
I think it would be dangerous for players to think too far ahead and try and match it up with the green jacket. The story that springs to mind is in '86 when Jack tells a beautiful story about putting on that yellow shirt because of the meaning that it had to him, and that sure did pair well with the green jacket that afternoon.
I would tell players to maybe not think that far ahead. Stick with that cliche of one shot at a time, and if the moment presents itself and you get to go down to Butler Cabin and spend a few minutes with the chairman and Jim Nantz, just enjoy every second of that.
Q. There's so many anniversaries we're talking about on this call with the players, but as we mentioned, 29th anniversary for Sellers covering the Masters and also for you, Jim, your 40th. Is there a particular moment of gratitude that sticks out to you two guys?
SELLERS SHY: Yeah, every year that we're invited back. That's what sticks out and that's what's the most rewarding is that as David said, we never take it for granted. It's very important to us.
Knowing that we are next to team members that have been on this journey with us just as long, Steve Milton, as Jim said, 40 years, Jim Rikhoff, here the man produced numerous Super Bowls and he is -- he loves this event.
We spend all year thinking about it. We spend all year crafting our storylines and our presentation. It's just something that we all take great pride in, and we hope it shows.
JIM NANTZ: There are places all over the golf course where my heart is filled with gratitude. It never leaves me. It really doesn't. In fact, it runs through me for the entire week. It's a blur.
But I think just hearing your question on this is the 40th, I have to go back to the first. I could not believe I was there. I could not believe I was entrusted to be a part of Frank Chirkinian's golf team, and I arrived in early March that year to shoot the promos that would run throughout the NCAA tournament. Frank had this theory that no one knew who I was, which was accurate, and he wanted to have me facing the camera shooting these promos, so when I showed up to his Masters tournament, I wasn't some stranger; there was some familiarity. That was Frank's line of thinking.
So I was summoned to Augusta. We shot the promos. I stood in front of the 16th green for most of them, about four or five, and at the end of that, he said, Son, I'm going to put you here. I brought you here to 16 because that's going to be your hole.
I couldn't believe it. I thought -- at first I couldn't believe I was going to be a part of it, but to be that late in the game, be there for the 70th hole of the Masters on Sunday, that was a very weighty assignment, and of course I'm trying to act like I'm unfazed -- appreciative but that the moment is not too big for me.
Inside I'm wanting to say, but Mr. Chirkinian, I was just in the college dorm not even four years ago. Are you sure you entrust me with this hole? I was scared out of my wits.
I was very grateful for the first time when Frank brought me to Augusta to shoot the promos and he had enough faith in me to put me at 16. Then when that tournament ended and Jack made of course a pivotal birdie there at 16 on Sunday, I went back to the compound and we were all just euphoric. We had just documented arguably the greatest golf tournament of all time, April 13, 1986. Frank was -- I'm 6'3", Frank was probably, what, 5'5", 5'6" --
SELLERS SHY: In Guccis.
JIM NANTZ: He gave me hug, and I leaned down, and he whispered in my ear as I was leaning down, and he said, you done well, Son. He said, you'll be coming back here for a long time.
I was just so grateful that I had not screwed it up, that I was going to get to see it for a second time. I just wanted to be invited back.
So I never lose that thought, that feeling, the gratitude of having another one. That's why we take them one at a time and we put everything we have, everything we're trained to do into one show without looking down the road.
This is a gift, after all. It's a gift for all of us. This is a great achievement to be entrusted, be a part of the CBS golf team and to have the Masters tournament and to do this, to make Augusta National shine as the greatest shrine in the game. Can't wait.
Q. Each of the last two years somebody from LIV has been a factor in this tournament. I'm curious how you guys prepare for the players that are on LIV that you're not seeing during the coverage you're doing the rest of the year really, and also if there's someone in particular from LIV who you think could be a factor, that you're kind of eyeing for this week or next week.
SELLERS SHY: I'll just speak quickly on the coverage. Listen, they were invited by the Masters tournament and we're covering every player that's within those ropes, within the boundaries, especially if they are part of the leaderboard like Bryson DeChambeau was last year and others. It's not even a thought of what we do and how we do it. We're here to cover a major. We're here to cover the Masters properly, period.
JIM NANTZ: I saw last year -- this is what I try to do. I try to get as close as I can to as many players before the first ball was in play on Thursday without being a burden, without being in their way, try to catch up for a brief moment, maybe have a question that they don't realize I'm trying to grab a morsel of information, a nugget, but it comes across as just common courtesy and a greeting and hello. Sometimes you'd be surprised, you get some interesting things.
Last year I decided to stand by the drop zone at 11, and here comes Bryson down the 11th fairway, and he comes over, and we had a visit. I always had a great relationship with Bryson when he played the PGA Tour, and I asked him how he was playing, and he said, I'm going to play really well this week, you watch.
I don't think he was playing -- I'd have to go back and look at it. I don't think he had the track record at that point for 2024 that would make you think that he would make a run at it, but then he went out and two days later, I think that was an Tuesday, maybe Wednesday, but he goes out in the first round and puts himself right in the middle of it. There were a couple things he said I was able to dispense on to the broadcast. That's what I hoped to do.
Yes, there are any number of players that certainly we'll keep an eye on. We'll keep an eye on everyone; Sellers said it best. But could Joaquín Niemann be a factor? Absolutely. Does Jon Rahm feel like he needs to atone for his play last year there? Absolutely. Koepka wants this tournament badly.
Listen, we cover them all the same. They've been invited to the tournament, and we'll do them justice.
TREVOR IMMELMAN: Absolutely. I prepare with the same intensity for every single player that is in the field. They're there for a reason. Much the same as anytime I have the opportunity, and I'm blessed enough to be on a CBS broadcast, so I'm reading, listening, speaking to everybody that I can to try and learn as much as I can in preparation.
There's two players from LIV I absolutely have my eye on this year. Rahm is one of them for sure. He's played four times this year. No wins but in the top 6 every time. He's got a brilliant record at Augusta National. Obviously the win we know about. He has four other top 10s in the eight Masters starts that he's had. He absolutely understands the golf course and knows acutely what it takes to play well around there.
I think the other player is who Jim mentioned: Joaquín Niemann. I think he comes in with quite a bit of pressure on himself. He's had a brilliant start to the season with two wins. But even some players are talking about him possibly being the best player in the world.
Now, the major championships is where he's really going to have to start stepping up. He's played 22 majors. He's never had a top 15. In fact, the 2023 Masters tied for 16th is his best ever finish in a major.
I actually think there's quite a bit of pressure on him coming into this Masters to really step up and show that he's got what it takes at the highest level.
But yeah, we all prepare for every single player, every single scenario, and we have a blast doing it.
DOTTIE PEPPER: Yeah, I would say the same. Having the position and the ability to be on the ground, walking through the practice rounds, talking to players, talking to caddies, and some of them we don't see as much as maybe we would like to, so there's more to find out. We were talking to Bryson -- might have been the same day that Jim ran into him on 11, I ran into him on the 18th green and he pulled me aside, and he said, were you in Fresno, California, at this particular pro-am fundraiser that Juli Inkster and Peter Jacobsen were, and I said, no. He said, you know, that's where I fell in love with the game. He said, it was because of Juli Inkster because she was so kind to me. My dad threw me in the middle of all these great players, and I didn't know if I was going to sink or swim, but she gave me the best push and was so supportive.
So those are the opportunities that we don't have all the time because of where golf is, but you approach them as professional and thorough and genuinely wanting to know what's going on with them right now, what's new in the bag, how's the family, all of those sorts of things, because part of the job is telling their story. It's not just talking about the X's and O's of getting around a golf course like Augusta or hitting a shot under pressure. It's what's gone into their total story. It's paramount that we do that for every player in the field and do it with respect and curiosity and the ultimate professionalism.
Q. For David, just off of what Jim just said, how much it meant to him to hear from Chirkinian, what was the phone call like to Frank to tell him you were going to be in the 16th tower?
DAVID BERSON: Well, Sellers and I had lots of conversations about what our plan would be, and when we made that determination, it was Sellers who had the luxury of placing that call to him. So Sellers, you can weigh in here.
SELLERS SHY: Well, listen, no one deserves it more than Frank, and he's been in this business a long time, and then prior to that was an outstanding golfer. Good enough to be, as I said, in his country -- in his homeland's Hall of Fame.
Frank is well respected not only by the players as a player but also by the players as a broadcaster. Needless to say, he's one of our core team members.
It just was an easy fit. It will be a seamless transition. We can't wait for everyone to enjoy this year's presentation.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you all. We look forward to seeing many of you next week. If you need anything in the meantime, please reach out to Jeff Szklinski or me, and enjoy the Masters, everyone. Thanks.
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