“A Tradition Unlike Any Other” — Augusta National Owns It

The thought around the world of golf is that it was Jim Nantz who first spoke that now-famous catch-phrase for The Masters — “A Tradition Unlike Any Other.”

The phrase now has a life of its own after 30 years and it has been trademarked by The Augusta National Golf Club.

While the phrase has been credited to Nantz all these years, the face of CBS golf has gone on the record and talked about the origin of the phrase.

“You know, it’s been around for a long time,” Nantz explained. “There was a legend at CBS named Doug Towey, who also was the same guy who had a big hand in ‘One Shining Moment,’ and we miss him. He passed away a few years ago. He was a great man.”  Nantz was referring to the NCAA basketball tournament highlight clip that goes by “One Shining Moment.”

Grant Hill posed the question to Nance during an NCAA tournament broadcast years ago.  And that’s when Nance mentioned Towey as an inspiration.  Although today, the credit goes totally to Nantz.

Augusta National now has the trademark on the phrase and even puts it on shirts sold in the merchandise shop on site.

Another phrase that is totally Nantz, is his traditional greeting at all CBS golf broadcasts:

“Hello Friends.”

Fred Couples Still A Sought-After Practice Partner:

One of the most sought-after guys for a practice round at The Masters is and remains Fred Couples.

Although Couples is well past his prime, he’s still been known to come up with some great rounds at The Masters and has willingly helped guide younger players around the course over the years.

Earlier this week, Patrick Cantlay went around with Couples.

“Fred and I played today, and we beat up on Xander (Schauffele) and Max Homa. Not surprising, Fred birdied 16 and 18. We had a great time,” Patrick Cantlay said earlier this week.

Cantlay befriended Couples on the west coast.  Cantlay has since moved to South Florida but remains pals with Freddie.

“Fred is really good at hitting his shots at the right height,” Cantlay said. “I’ve been talking with him about that lately. We’ve played a few rounds in the last month together, and I think he instinctively picks the right shot a lot and he’ll pick the right club more often than other people.

“He thinks about picking the right club, where if I leave it out there, it’s in a decent spot, and if I pull it a little bit, I can hit this as hard as I want and maybe it will go 10 feet past.”

Cantlay is among the pre-tournament favorites this week.  Couples is not.