CBS star Amanda Balionis is preparing for a new chapter in her career but the journalist is no stranger to big-name interviews – including when she spoke to Tiger Woods
CBS announcer Amanda Balionis has looked back over the interview that left her the most nervous during her broadcasting career
CBS star Amanda Balionis recalled she was left shaking during an interview with Tiger Woods as she admitted the conversation was the most nerve-racking moment of her career.
The journalist has become a familiar face to golf fans across the United States as a PGA Tour reporter on the network but is set to move on to a different sport in the golf offseason. She signed off from her duties covering golf in an emotional Instagram post, which included pictures of her hard at work in the role.
Among this montage was a snap of her interviewing Rory McIlroy earlier this year, as she also looked forward to her next post as an NFL sideline reporter. And while the 39-year-old is used to interviewing big names -be it golf or NFL – it seems Woods’ presence hit her harder than expected.
Speaking to Links Magazine, Balionis recounted: “When I started with PGATour.com, I think Tiger was my second ever sit-down interview. I’m very thankful the camera angle was from the waist up; my legs were shaking uncontrollably from nervousness. I lost a lot of sleep before that interview.”
Despite now only playing a handful of times a year, if we’re lucky, Woods, of course, is still the biggest name in the sport. Having revolutionized the sport with 15 major wins and 82 PGA Tour wins, it’s of no surprise he continues to have the ‘Tiger’ effect on fans and broadcasters alike.
The interview with Tiger Woods left CBS announcer Amanda Balionis physically shaking (
Image:
Harry How/Getty Images)
Woods, however, wasn’t the only memorable interview for Balionis. Naming her favoirte interviews, she said: “The Dustin Johnson interview after he won the 2020 Masters, when he got vulnerable with us. Presiding over the trophy presentation after Phil Mickelson won the 2021 PGA Championship was unbelievable; understanding the historic element and witnessing the crowds ushering him up to the 72nd green. That’s an image I’ll never forget.”
And it seems Balionis has one man to thank for her success, naming Jim Nantz as her role mode. “Jim Nantz is number one. I don’t think he could ever get enough credit for his talent,” she said.
“His memory knows no bounds; he recalls things in the moment in the most accurate way from 20 years ago that will put your jaw on the floor. But it’s not just what he does on camera; it’s the way he carries himselfas a person. He takes so much time to support and be an advocate for the people around him, and that’s what I want to be remembered for, too.”
