Nance & Couples to Reconnect at Hall of Fame Ceremony


When the World Golf Hall of Fame & Museum inducts Fred Couples, Colin Montgomerie, Willie Park Jr., Ken Schofield and Ken Venturi at its Induction Ceremony on May 6, CBS golf anchor Jim Nantz, European Tour Chief Executive George O'Grady and former USGA Executive Director and current Golf Digest columnist David Fay will be on hand as presenters.

Nantz will have double duty at the ceremony, where he will present for Couples and Venturi. Nantz has a special connection to both men. He and Couples were close friends and teammates while in college at the University of Houston, and even jokingly practiced a Butler Cabin interview together.

So when Couples won the 1991 Masters with Nantz on the call for CBS, it was special for both men. "I cannot imagine ever witnessing a moment that will touch me more deeply than this perfect fulfillment of a glorious dream that was shared by intimate friends for so many years," Nantz later told CBS.

Nantz had another memorable moment on the air with Venturi. The two were paired in the 18th tower on CBS for 17 years and became one of golf's most recognized broadcast teams. When Venturi ended his run after 35 years of broadcasting in 2002, they shared an embrace and an emotional Nantz said, "You won't be in that chair any longer, but as long as I'm here, you'll be by my side."

O'Grady began his run as the Chief Executive of the European Tour in 2005, the same year Montgomerie won his final Order of Merit crown. O'Grady was an executive at the European Tour in the 1990s, when Montgomerie won seven consecutive Orders of Merit. The two have known each other for decades and both contributed greatly to the Tour's expansion in popularity and influence.

When Fay became the USGA's Executive Director in 1989, Schofield was in the middle of what would be a 30-year run at the helm of the European Tour. As the game expanded internationally, the two administrators would work together on several initiatives, including the International Golf Federation. They also served together for several years on the World Golf Foundation's board of directors.

The ceremony will air on Golf Channel on May 6 at 10 p.m. ET, with a "Green Carpet Special" preview during Golf Channel's "Live from the Players" broadcast from 5-6 p.m. and again from 9-10 p.m.

"We are thrilled to have another illustrious group of presenters, along with the outstanding Dan Hicks to host this year's Induction Ceremony," said Jack Peter, Sr. Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at the Hall of Fame. "The Class of 2013 is a celebration of the rich, international history of the game, and the presenters will provide an excellent complement to the stories of our Inductees."

The Induction Ceremony will be held in the St. Johns County Convention Center adjacent to the World Golf Hall of Fame at World Golf Village in St. Augustine, Fla. Tickets to the ceremony and gala are available to the public. For information about the events during weekend, visit www.WorldGolfHallofFame.org.