Each year around this time, old stories come up about the strict rules governing what can and cannot be discussed on the broadcast of The Masters.
In most cases, the bans are placed on golf colloquialisms. Whether it’s Jim Nantz and Trevor Immelman or Scott Van Pelt and Chris Strange, or any of the numerous TV reporters on-site, they cannot use common phrases like “sand trap” or “rough.” Instead, they must use Augusta speak. The sand-filled potholes are “bunkers,” and the edge of the green is called the “second cut.”
Then, there are the more high-stakes restrictions. Nantz cannot reference a golfer’s clothing brand or anything related to money and winnings from the tournament.
But the CBS announcer has no issue with any of it. The opposite, in fact.
“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 at all?” Nantz told reporters this week, per Sportico. “It’s just nothing but noise.”
Nantz loves that rather than riches, Augusta offers immortality, symbolized by that legendary green jacket.
“You won’t come up with anything that means more than just a green jacket,” Nantz added. “In a world that is filled with NIL and guaranteed contracts and how much they get in the guarantee and all this, [it’s about] playing for a green jacket. … You achieve it, man, and you have found a place in history. It’s permanence. It’s forever.”
It’s not a stretch to wonder whether the feelings Nantz expresses here had something to do with his decision to retire from calling the NCAA men’s Final Four. He’s not wrong that the sports world is increasingly driven by big business, much more so than when he started sportscasting in Houston, more than 40 years ago.
Not everyone agrees with Nantz. The sports blog Defector called him “weird” for these comments, and sure, maybe it’s a little strange to act as if golfers don’t value the nearly $4 million they win for finishing first at Augusta.
But Jim Nantz isn’t alone in lamenting the explosion in money across all facets of sports. And he’s not alone in seeing The Masters as a… tradition… that has managed to outrun that trend.