Jim Nantz Reveals the Emotional Reason He Says ‘Hello, Friends’ Before Every Broadcast
CBS Sports announcer Jim Nantz revealed that his signature catchphrase was never a branding exercise — it was a private message to his father, who was battling Alzheimer’s disease.
For millions of sports fans, the words “Hello, friends” signal the start of marquee events like the Masters, the Super Bowl, and the Final Four. Nantz has opened his broadcasts with that greeting for more than two decades.
Most viewers assume it is a polished television catchphrase, but its origins are deeply personal.
In an interview on the Vanity Index Podcast, released Feb. 25, Nantz explained that the phrase traces back to 2002, when he was preparing to broadcast the PGA Championship in Hazeltine, Minnesota.
His father — also named Jim Nantz — had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in 1995, seven years earlier.
Before the tournament began, Nantz made his father a promise.
“When I come on the air, I’m gonna look into that camera, and I’m gonna say, ‘Hello, friends,’ and that’s for you, Dad, ‘cause you have nothing but friends,” he said on the podcast, which is hosted by Chad Mumm, creator of Netflix’s Full Swing, and Wells Adams, former contestant on The Bachelorette.
“That’s going to be my little trigger line that lets you know at that very moment I’m thinking of you,” he added.
It was a son using the reach of national television to send a personal signal to one person watching at home — a way to bridge the distance between a broadcast booth and a family member struggling with a devastating illness.
A One-Time Gesture That Stuck
Nantz said the phrase was meant to be a “one-and-done” opening line, used only for that single broadcast at Hazeltine. But one of his CBS colleagues encouraged him to continue using it.
He used it the following day, and it stuck. What began as a one-time tribute became the hallmark of one of the most recognizable voices in American sports broadcasting.
“Some people, I think, think it’s some sort of attempt, lame attempt to try to have a signature phrase or line – had nothing to do with that,” Nantz said on the podcast. “It all had to do with trying to communicate with my father.”
Now, nearly 25 years after that first broadcast in Hazeltine, Nantz still says “Hello, friends” before every time he goes on the air.
“I say, ‘Hello, friends,’ and I think of my dad watching down on me, and it relaxes me, and I fall into the flow of the show,” he added. “So that’s the story.”
For Nantz, those two words serve as both a tribute and a calming mechanism, tying the biggest moments in sports to the most personal corner of his life.
A Family’s Fight Against Alzheimer’s
Jim Nantz Jr., sometimes referred to as Jim Nantz II, was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 1995. He died in 2008 after a 13-year battle with the disease, according to his obituary. He was 79.
Nantz channeled his grief into action. In 2011, he founded the Nantz National Alzheimer Center (NNAC) in partnership with Houston Methodist.
The center was established to honor not only his father but also as a tribute to his mother, Doris, and sister, Nancy, for their tireless dedication to the caregiving of his dad.
The founding of the center underscores a reality many families know: Alzheimer’s disease doesn’t just affect the person diagnosed. It reshapes the lives of spouses, children, and siblings who take on the demanding and often invisible work of caregiving.
Nantz’s mother, Doris, passed away peacefully in 2022, according to her obituary. She was 91.
BOTTOM LINE: For anyone who has ever watched a Masters broadcast, a Super Bowl, or a Final Four and heard those two familiar words, knowing they began as a son’s private promise to his ailing father transforms one of sports television’s most iconic greetings into something far more meaningful.
Production of this article included the use of AI. It was reviewed and edited by a team of content specialists.
