Nick Bonfield picks out 15 things you're likely to hear from the commentary booth during the 2016 Masters at Augusta National
2016 Masters broadcasting bingo...
With the 2016 Masters almost upon us, focus has naturally shifted to contenders, Augusta National and the history of this great championship.
Even though there is so much to discuss in those spheres, let’s turn our attention momentarily away from the golf course.
With Sky Sports taking live Open Championship broadcasting rights from this year onwards, there is concern that the end might by nigh for the BBC’s live Saturday and Sunday Masters coverage.
That means it’s possible Peter Alliss will be commentating on his last men’s golf tournament. He’ll be joined by Ken Brown, Hazel Irvine and Andrew Cotter, while the likes of Ewen Murray, Bruce Critchley, Colin Montgomerie and Paul McGinley will be flying the flag for Sky.
Related: Paul McGinley swing sequence
Regardless of which channel you watch, here are 15 things that are almost certain to happen during 2016 Masters broadcasting. In no particular order…
1) Kirsty Gallacher will stage a number of awkward interviews during the Masters Par 3 Championship
2) Ken Brown will find a way to incorporate a rubber duck into a ‘Ken on the Course’ segment
3) Ewen Murray will use the word ‘surely’ incorrectly and excessively
4) Bruce Critchley will refer to the 2015 Masters Champion as ‘Justin Spieth’
5) Peter Alliss will mispronounce someone’s name, call someone the wrong name, correct himself after calling someone the wrong name or someone will do so on his behalf
6) Peter Alliss will make reference to a golf club you’ve never heard of, but one he seems to have an intimate knowledge of, every time he’s on air
7) Someone will use the phrase ‘the annals of golfing history’
8) Colin Montgomerie will use a generic question as the basis for launching into a story about something he once did
9) Someone will have a meltdown at the Sky Cart
10) Someone will call a 300-yard drive ‘huge’, even though that doesn’t constitute huge in today’s game
11) David Livingstone will sit awkwardly in the Sky studio, feet twitching and pointing inwards, with an iPad that he never looks at seemingly taped to his hand
12) Someone will reference ‘the shot heard around the world’
13) You’ll spend hours over the course of the week looking at one of Augusta National’s many bridges during a lull in the action
14) There will be excessive and unnecessary references to the Butler Cabin
15) Jack Nicklaus will join the Sky commentary team for a segment, with everyone acting as if it’s the greatest honour that can be bestowed on anyone… even though it happens every year.
Have we forgotten any? Let us know in the comments below, or on our social media channels
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