In the 40 years that Jim Nantz has called the Masters at Augusta National, he has learned to expect the unexpected. So when Scottie Scheffler, the No. 1 player in the Official World Golf Rankings, stepped up to his second shot at the Par 3 12th hole on Friday afternoon, Nantz was well prepared for Scheffler to show off his world-class short game.
Scheffler’s tee shot at Golden Bell, the official name of No. 12, nearly resulted in his round unraveling, hitting it into the wooded backdrop behind the green.
Fortunately, the two-time Masters winner got the member’s bounce of all member’s bounces, as the ball ended up bouncing out of the bushes just off the green.
Ahead of Scheffler’s second shot, Jim Nantz appeared to have a feeling that we could see a special chip shot from Scheffler to take advantage of the break he received, mentioning how Scheffler had chipped in from that area in a past Masters tournament.
“He’s chipped in here before. I’m sure that’s not lost on him,” said Nantz as Scheffler addressed the ball.
Like clockwork, Scheffler proceeded to hole the chip shot, moving to -5 for the tournament and -1 for the day.
“It’s got a chance… Oh my goodness! He did it,” said Nantz. “Could have been a five, maybe even more. Walks away with a two. There are years you see something happen on a Friday and just know come Sunday that you are going to be reflecting on its importance. This might be one of those moments.”
Ultimately, Scheffler didn’t have his best stuff on Friday, sticking at -5 for the tournament by the end of his day. But as Nantz alluded to, avoiding near disaster and instead converting a birdie keeps Scheffler in contention. He sits just three shots behind the leader, Justin Rose.
Only time will tell whether Nantz ultimately ends up being correct in his assessment that this moment could be something that viewers are reflecting on come Sunday.
But either way, Nantz clearly has a sixth sense for when magical shots could be coming at Augusta National.
About Reice Shipley
Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.