Verne Lundquist names his “1 and 1A” calls in The Masters history

Verne Lundquist is on the verge of retiring from the broadcast booth, and the 2024 Masters will be the final golf event of his career. During his 40 broadcasts from Augusta National Golf Club for CBS, Lundquist has witnessed many of the greatest achievements in the history of modern golf.

For that reason, there is no more authoritative voice than Verne Lundquist to point out the greatest moments of the Masters over the past four decades. And that’s exactly what the renowned broadcaster did on Thursday, April 11, during a special Golf Channel broadcast prior to the start of the first round.

During the interview, Verne Lundquist was asked to name the most memorable calls of his career. Specifically, he was asked to rank the victories of Jack Nicklaus in 1986 and Tiger Woods in 2005. Lundquist’s answer was a testament to excellence:

“Yeah it’s 1 and 1A… I give slight deference to the older guy, because he [Nicklaus] is six months older than I am, and I will never let him forget that. But, they’re interchangeable, I mean, to have been blessed… to have had those two calls at this wonderful event is a blessing beyond measure.”

Verne Lundquist has had a very long and successful career as a play-by-play announcer that began in the early 1960s. Lundquist has worked for major radio and television networks such as ABC, CBS and TNT. He has not only narrated golf, but has devoted much of his professional career to both professional and college football.

Verne Lundquist’s picks are actually the right ones

It’s hard to argue with Verne Lundquist’s criteria when it comes to the Masters’ most iconic moments. In terms of individual plays, Tiger Woods’ historic chip on the fourth round 16th hole during the 2005 edition is unforgettable, but when it comes to the most memorable victories, Nicklaus in ’86 and Woods in ’05 should get the most votes.

The Golden Bear staged a spectacular comeback in the 1986 edition to win his sixth green jacket and become the oldest player to win the Masters. Nicklaus started with a 2-over first round, which placed him outside the main contenders.

However, proving that few players know the Augusta National course as well as he does, Nicklaus shot 1-under for the second round and 3-under on moving day. Nevertheless, he started the fourth round four shots behind the leader at the time, Greg Norman.

Nicklaus overcame the deficit with an excellent final round of 7-under 65, finishing one stroke ahead of Norman and Tom Kite.

As for Woods’ victory in 2005, it had many similarities to Nicklaus’ win in ’86. The Big Cat also got off to a slow start, shooting 2-over in the first round and finishing outside the top 10.

Woods quickly proved his credentials, shooting a tremendous 6 under for the second round to climb into third place. However, his position was still in jeopardy as the interim leader (Chris DiMarco) was no less than six shots ahead of him.

Tiger had no choice but to mount a heroic comeback on moving day to stay in contention, and that is exactly what he did. Woods shot a fabulous 7 under to take the lead, three shots clear of Di Marco.

However, nothing was decided and Woods still had to sweat his iconic red shirt to take the win. Di Marco came back with a 4-under 68 for the fourth round, while Tiger could only manage a 1-under 71, leaving the two tied after 72 holes.

However, Woods would once again show his extraordinary class, winning the playoff in one hole after making birdie on the 18th that DiMarco could not match. It was Woods’ fourth green jacket in just eight years.