Jim Nantz calls Rory McIlroy's historic 2025 Masters win in playoff
Show Caption
Hide Caption
Rory McIlroy shares his morning routine at Augusta
Rory McIlroy shares his morning routine and how staying off his phone keeps him locked in.
The Masters
"Hello friends."
Jim Nantz's voice is as synonymous with the Masters as Pimento Cheese and azalea flowers. He's anchored CBS's coverage from Augusta National Golf Club since 1989, but there's one phrase he hasn't said yet.
"The journey is over. (Rory) McIlroy has his masterpiece," Nantz called as McIlroy dropped to his feet in tears.
Rory McIlroy won the 2025 Masters on Sunday after defeating Justin Rose in a playoff after they both finished at 11-under through 72 holes. McIlroy's Masters win marks his fifth career major and first since 2014, but more importantly, the elusive green jacket completes McIlroy's career Grand Slam. McIlroy is only the sixth golfer to win all four golf majors, joining Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, who last accomplished the feat in 2000.
Nantz added the fourth and final round of the 2025 Masters was "one of the strangest rounds I've ever seen."
Jim Nantz calls Rory McIlroy's historic Masters win
JIM NANTZ: CBS commentator not ready to retire from the Masters broadcast after 40 years
MASTERS ROUND 4: Highlights as Rory McIlroy gets historic win at Augusta
Earlier in the broadcast, Nantz predicted that hole No. 9 could be a good omen for McIlroy.
'A lot of Masters champions have birdied the ninth, including Scottie Scheffler last year and Jack Nicklaus in 1986,' Nantz said. As luck would have it, McIlroy proceeded to birdie the par-4 No. 9 and made the turn with a four-shot lead over Bryson DeChambeau.
McIlroy had an opportunity to win the Masters tournament outright, but he missed a putt that would have claimed a green jacket and ended with a bogey on hole No. 18, sending the tournament into a playoff. As McIlroy approached another putt to win the title in the playoff on No. 18, Nantz questioned, "Is he ready for it to be his time?"
McIlroy sank a putt to birdie the first playoff hole, winning his first Masters tournament to complete a career Grand Slam.
"His reaction is 11 years in the making," Nantz said as McIlroy soaked in his historic Masters win.
Despite being the voice of the Masters for the past 40 years, Nantz has no plans to leave the booth anytime soon. The legendary broadcaster, who also provides CBS's NFL coverage since 2004, said he's taking each tournament 'one year at a time.' Nantz's 40th call of the Masters this year ties former CBS broadcaster Verne Lundquist, who called his 40th and final Masters last year.
The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news — fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
8 minutes ago
Wimbledon: No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka avoids the kind of upset that has happened a lot this year
LONDON -- LONDON (AP) — Aryna Sabalenka was just two points from dropping the opening set of her second-round Wimbledon match three times on Wednesday before asserting herself for a 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory over Marie Bouzkova to avoid the sort of surprise that has sent a group of seeded players home. Four of the top 10 women's seeds failed to make it out of the first round: No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 5 Zheng Qinwen and No. 9 Paula Badosa. In all, a record-tying 23 seeded players — 10 women, 13 men — were gone by the end of Day 2, equaling the most at any Grand Slam event in the past 25 years. 'Of course you're going to know the overall picture. ... I hope it's no upsets anymore in this tournament,' the No. 1-ranked Sabalenka said afterward with a chuckle. "If you know what I mean.' She is a three-time Grand Slam champion, with all of those titles coming on hard courts at the Australian Open or U.S. Open. She also was the runner-up to Gauff at the clay-court French Open last month — drawing criticism from some over her post-match comments, a flap she and Gauff set aside via social media videos last week — but hasn't been past the semifinals on the grass of the All England Club. A year ago, Sabalenka was forced to miss Wimbledon because of an injured shoulder. On Wednesday, the record-breaking heat of the first two days gave way to rain that delayed the start of play on smaller courts for about two hours, along with temperatures that dropped from above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) to below 68 F (20 C). At Centre Court, the 48th-ranked Bouzkova went ahead 6-5 in the first set with the match's initial service break thanks to a double-fault by Sabalenka. Bouzkova served for that set, and was two points away from it at 30-15 in that game, again at 30-all, then once more at deuce. But on the last such occasion, Sabalenka came through with a forehand volley winner she punctuated with a yell, followed by a down-the-line backhand winner that was accompanied by another shout. 'That was a tough moment," said Sabalenka, who will face 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu or 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova next. 'Until that point, (my) return wasn't great enough to break her serve. I'm really glad ... everything clicked together and I was able to break her back. I kind of like felt a little bit better.' That sent them to a tiebreaker, and from 4-all there, Sabalenka took the next three points, ending the set with a powerful forehand return winner off a 67 mph second serve. In the second set, the only break arrived for a 3-2 lead for Sabalenka, and that was basically that. Sabalenka compiled a 41-17 edge in winners while making only 18 unforced errors in a match that lasted a little more than 1 1/2 hours. Australian Open champion Madison Keys, who is seeded sixth, joined Sabalenka in the third round, beating Olga Danilovic 6-4, 6-2. Other players in action later included 2024 runner-up Jasmine Paolini among the women and two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe among the men. Novak Djokovic, who has won seven of his 24 major championships at Wimbledon will lead off the Centre Court schedule on Day 4 against Britain's Dan Evans at 1:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. ET), followed by Iga Swiatek vs. Caty McNally, and No. 1 Jannik Sinner vs. Aleksandar Vukic.
NBC Sports
20 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka avoids the kind of upset that has happened a lot this year
Aryna Sabalenka was just two points from dropping the opening set of her second-round Wimbledon match three times on Wednesday before asserting herself for a 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory over Marie Bouzkova to avoid the sort of surprise that has sent a group of seeded players home. Four of the top 10 women's seeds failed to make it out of the first round: No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 5 Zheng Qinwen and No. 9 Paula Badosa. In all, a record-tying 23 seeded players — 10 women, 13 men — were gone by the end of Day 2, equaling the most at any Grand Slam event in the past 25 years. 'Of course you're going to know the overall picture. ... I hope it's no upsets anymore in this tournament,' the No. 1-ranked Sabalenka said afterward with a chuckle. 'If you know what I mean.' She is a three-time Grand Slam champion, with all of those titles coming on hard courts at the Australian Open or U.S. Open. She also was the runner-up to Gauff at the clay-court French Open last month — drawing criticism from some over her post-match comments, a flap she and Gauff set aside via social media videos last week — but hasn't been past the semifinals on the grass of the All England Club. A year ago, Sabalenka was forced to miss Wimbledon because of an injured shoulder. On Wednesday, the record-breaking heat of the first two days gave way to rain that delayed the start of play on smaller courts for about two hours, along with temperatures that dropped from above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) to below 68 F (20 C). At Centre Court, the 48th-ranked Bouzkova went ahead 6-5 in the first set with the match's initial service break thanks to a double-fault by Sabalenka. Bouzkova served for that set, and was two points away from it at 30-15 in that game, again at 30-all, then once more at deuce. But on the last such occasion, Sabalenka came through with a forehand volley winner she punctuated with a yell, followed by a down-the-line backhand winner that was accompanied by another shout. 'That was a tough moment,' said Sabalenka, who will face 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu or 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova next. 'Until that point, (my) return wasn't great enough to break her serve. I'm really glad ... everything clicked together and I was able to break her back. I kind of like felt a little bit better.' That sent them to a tiebreaker, and from 4-all there, Sabalenka took the next three points, ending the set with a powerful forehand return winner off a 67 mph second serve. In the second set, the only break arrived for a 3-2 lead for Sabalenka, and that was basically that. Sabalenka compiled a 41-17 edge in winners while making only 18 unforced errors in a match that lasted a little more than 1 1/2 hours. What else happened Wednesday at Wimbledon? Australian Open champion Madison Keys, who is seeded sixth, joined Sabalenka in the third round, beating Olga Danilovic 6-4, 6-2. Other players in action later included 2024 runner-up Jasmine Paolini among the women and two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe among the men. Who plays Thursday at the All England Club? Novak Djokovic, who has won seven of his 24 major championships at Wimbledon will lead off the Centre Court schedule on Day 4 against Britain's Dan Evans at 1:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. ET), followed by Iga Swiatek vs. Caty McNally, and No. 1 Jannik Sinner vs. Aleksandar Vukic.
San Francisco Chronicle
21 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Wimbledon: No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka avoids the kind of upset that has happened a lot this year
LONDON (AP) — Aryna Sabalenka was just two points from dropping the opening set of her second-round Wimbledon match three times on Wednesday before asserting herself for a 7-6 (4), 6-4 victory over Marie Bouzkova to avoid the sort of surprise that has sent a group of seeded players home. Four of the top 10 women's seeds failed to make it out of the first round: No. 2 Coco Gauff, No. 3 Jessica Pegula, No. 5 Zheng Qinwen and No. 9 Paula Badosa. In all, a record-tying 23 seeded players — 10 women, 13 men — were gone by the end of Day 2, equaling the most at any Grand Slam event in the past 25 years. 'Of course you're going to know the overall picture. ... I hope it's no upsets anymore in this tournament,' the No. 1-ranked Sabalenka said afterward with a chuckle. "If you know what I mean.' She is a three-time Grand Slam champion, with all of those titles coming on hard courts at the Australian Open or U.S. Open. She also was the runner-up to Gauff at the clay-court French Open last month — drawing criticism from some over her post-match comments, a flap she and Gauff set aside via social media videos last week — but hasn't been past the semifinals on the grass of the All England Club. A year ago, Sabalenka was forced to miss Wimbledon because of an injured shoulder. On Wednesday, the record-breaking heat of the first two days gave way to rain that delayed the start of play on smaller courts for about two hours, along with temperatures that dropped from above 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32 Celsius) to below 68 F (20 C). At Centre Court, the 48th-ranked Bouzkova went ahead 6-5 in the first set with the match's initial service break thanks to a double-fault by Sabalenka. Bouzkova served for that set, and was two points away from it at 30-15 in that game, again at 30-all, then once more at deuce. But on the last such occasion, Sabalenka came through with a forehand volley winner she punctuated with a yell, followed by a down-the-line backhand winner that was accompanied by another shout. 'That was a tough moment," said Sabalenka, who will face 2021 U.S. Open champion Emma Raducanu or 2023 Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova next. 'Until that point, (my) return wasn't great enough to break her serve. I'm really glad ... everything clicked together and I was able to break her back. I kind of like felt a little bit better.' That sent them to a tiebreaker, and from 4-all there, Sabalenka took the next three points, ending the set with a powerful forehand return winner off a 67 mph second serve. In the second set, the only break arrived for a 3-2 lead for Sabalenka, and that was basically that. Sabalenka compiled a 41-17 edge in winners while making only 18 unforced errors in a match that lasted a little more than 1 1/2 hours. What else happened Wednesday at Wimbledon? Australian Open champion Madison Keys, who is seeded sixth, joined Sabalenka in the third round, beating Olga Danilovic 6-4, 6-2. Other players in action later included 2024 runner-up Jasmine Paolini among the women and two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe among the men. Who plays Thursday at the All England Club? Novak Djokovic, who has won seven of his 24 major championships at Wimbledon will lead off the Centre Court schedule on Day 4 against Britain's Dan Evans at 1:30 p.m. local time (8:30 a.m. ET), followed by Iga Swiatek vs. Caty McNally, and No. 1 Jannik Sinner vs. Aleksandar Vukic. ___
