Dan Hicks was at his best when he got everyone on the NBC crew involved in the telecast, and it was one of those moments that led to perhaps his most famous call in golf.
Hicks, who died Wednesday at age 64 after 35 years with NBC, was in the booth for the 2008 U.S. Open. Tiger Woods, playing with shredded ligaments in his left knee and a double stress fracture in his leg, faced a 12-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole at Torrey Pines to force a playoff.
“He asked what it was like on the 18th,” Roger Maltbie, who was on the ground for NBC at Torrey Pines, said Thursday. “I said Tiger expected to make it. Everyone expected him to make it. He had that invincible aura at the time.”
The putt curled in the right side and Hicks said, “Expect anything different?”
It remains Hicks' most famous call in the 22 times he called the U.S. Open, and for Maltbie, it spoke to what made him so good at his craft and made it easy for everyone around him.
“A very inclusive guy, always upbeat and thoughtful, treated everyone with respect,” said Maltbie, who started at NBC the fall before Hicks arrived. “He was a great quarterback, point guard. If you listen to his broadcast, to me he was terrific at passing the ball around. He always had a question, always got you engaged. That's a big part of the job.”
Hicks, who also called Notre Dame football and the Olympics, died suddenly of what was described as an acute illness.
He was a warming presence inside and outside the booth, quietly observing players on the range before important rounds, and passing the ball whether it was to Johnny Miller or Paul Azinger, or even when NBC briefly took an unusual route of a four-man booth.
The PGA Tour referred to his partnership with Miller as “one of golf television's defining broadcast partnerships.”
Miller said when he retired, “Dan Hicks is so smooth and good it just allows me to do my thing without really a lot of pressure.”
“I'm just devastated,” Azinger said. “What a void to not have Dan. That's the most impactful man in every aspect of his life. He never got cheated one day out of being happy.”
Hicks was remembered as much for how evenly he treated those around him as some of his calls, by which broadcasters often are measured. Hicks certainly had his share.
Europe rallied from a four-point deficit on the final day to stun the Americans in the 2012 Ryder Cup, clinching the victory when Martin Kaymer holed a 6-foot par putt to beat Steve Stricker.
“Europe has pulled off the improbable,” Hicks said. “Their own miracle at Medinah.”
J.J. Spaun came to the 18th green at Oakmont with a one-shot lead and hit his approach to the left side of the green. He needed two putts from 65 feet to win the 2025 U.S. Open.
“How about one?” Hicks said when Spaun made the memorable putt. “In one of the most unlikely final-round Sundays in U.S. Open history, J.J. Spaun closes the deal with a birdie. ... The stuff you dream about.”
Europe had won three straight Ryder Cups when the American team finally won at Hazeltine. The winning point came from a captain's pick, Ryan Moore, who two-putted for par from 10 feet.
“The European streak is finally over. Ryan Moore has provided the difference, and the United States will begin a celebration that will ring into the night and beyond,” Hicks said.
Hicks was on the ground for NBC in 1999 at Pinehurst No. 2 when Payne Stewart famously hit wedge to 15 feet and saved par to win the U.S. Open. He was in the booth when Bryson DeChambeau got up-and-down with a 55-yard bunker shot and 4-foot putt to win by one.
“Another epic up-and-down at Pinehurst for U.S. Open championship," Hicks said. "Bryson DeChambeau now has two, the second at No. 2.”
Jimmy Roberts recalls leaning on Hicks the first time he had to do play-by-play, and how Hicks guided him along as someone who loved to see others succeed.
“I think there are so many giants in our industry who are out there doing such incredible work, but Dan never made it about himself,” Roberts said. “I don’t know that he ever got the credit that he deserves."
Hicks was the voice during the Florida swing on the PGA Tour, including The Players Championship. He was there for Nelly Korda winning the U.S. Women's Open at Riviera, the return of Woods at the 2018 Tour Championship and so many Ryder Cups.
“The beauty of his job is that we'll all remember that voice and the stories he told and the kind of experiences he gave us through calling golf,” Max Homa said Thursday at the Austin Championship. “I'm glad I've got my memories with him because they were always great.”
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