There is no one greater than the Masters.
Tiger Woods and Scottie Scheffler not included. and most definitely not the man who was hired to discuss the two of them from a little tent off the 16th green’s right side.
Verne Lundquist, however, was the star of the show on Sunday afternoon at the 2024 Masters—or at least the highlight—enough to draw considerable interest from those following the action at Augusta National from home. And why is it the case? That was, in fact, his last program for CBS, following over 40 Masters in the booth.
As you may already be aware, Lundquist has made a name for himself in the professional sports world by covering the SEC and Masters for CBS Sports. He has provided the voice for a number of legendary sporting moments, such as the most well-known one from Tiger Woods’ Masters career, the chip-in on the sixteenth hole in 2005 that saw Woods’ Nike-logoed ball spill over the edge and Verne utter the most well-known lines of his golf broadcasting career.
“Have you seen anything like that in your LIFE?”
No event, not even Verne’s other renowned Masters call, Jack Nicklaus’s “Yes Sir!” in 1986, could top that iconic sendoff in 2005, when Woods would win all five of his green jackets alongside Lundquist in the tower above. Even yet, the CBS Sports anchor managed to earn a reputation as a popular presence throughout the Masters tournament and celebrate a suitable send-off with his final broadcast from the booth this past weekend.
This is well known to golf enthusiasts who watched the show early on Sunday morning on the Masters app. The moment Verne waited for Woods, the counterpart to so many of his Masters memories, to appear near the side of the 16th green may have been the most illuminating moment of that swan song.
Lundquist was seen waiting for Woods just behind a large oak tree on the right side of the 16th green. A few seconds later, cameras caught the two of them shakin’ hands and exchanging pleasantries before Woods left for the remainder of his round.
It appeared that the discussion would be lost to the sands of time, with no reporters or microphones in the vicinity, but Lundquist disclosed precisely what the two legends discussed during their post-Masters appearance on the Steam Room podcast on Monday morning alongside Ernie Johnson and Charles Barkley.
Lundquist remarked, “I went down to 16 and he was playing 14 at the time and he was having a horrible day.” “But even though he was five over, he left the green at sixteen, and I simply said, ‘Tiger, thank you,'” as he got closer. He shook my hand and we had a conversation.
In a news conference on tournament Tuesday, Lundquist complimented Woods for calling Verne “poetic.” Woods is a 15-time major champion.
Woods answered back with an additional eight words.
Verne recalled, “He said, ‘We’re going to be tied at the hip forever.'” “Due to that shot and the things I said.”
The farewell voice of the Masters will never forget it; it was a tiny but poignant gesture.
“What I value most about it is…” stated Lundquist. I was still standing beneath the tree when he went over and teed off at seventeen. He simply gave me the thumbs up as he passed me on the 17th fairway. That is something I will always cherish.
Though it wouldn’t have to, that particular moment would not be included in the CBS broadcast. The golf world was fully aware of Tiger’s emotions. What’s more, they understood why.
It was best described by how they felt upon hearing the three words that have become Lundquist’s most famous:
