Dick Enberg

Tennis Commentator

Dick Enberg, one of the most honored and respected sportscasters for decades known for his eloquence and exuberance – including his signature phrase “Oh, my!” – joined ESPN in 2004 for coverage of Grand Slam tennis events, starting with that year’s French Open.  The previous year, ESPN had become the first network to televise as many as three of the four tournaments – adding Wimbledon to the Australian Open and French Open.  Enberg, who was a prominent sportscaster in Southern California starting in the mid-1960s, began with NBC in 1975 and joined CBS in 2000.  He has covered virtually every major sport and event in his illustrious career, winning 13 Sports Emmy Awards – plus the lifetime achievement award in 2000 – and has been named National Sportscaster of the Year nine times. 

In 2009 for ESPN, Enberg worked his fifth Australian Open, 23rd French Open and 26th Wimbledon, as well as well his 10th US Open for CBS.  ESPN also televised that event for the first time, giving the network all four Grand Slam events.  No network has previously held the rights to all of tennis’ majors.

While with NBC, in addition to Wimbledon and the French Open, Enberg was most identified with the NFL, including eight Super Bowls; college football, including nine Rose Bowls and six Orange Bowls; and college basketball (five NCAA championships), including anchoring the memorable three-man booth with Al Maguire and Billy Packer.  He also worked four Olympic Games and called Major League Baseball, including the World Series; golf’s U.S. Open five times, three heavyweight title fights, the Ryder Cup twice and the NBA.  He even called three CFL games during the 1982 NFL strike.  In 10 years with CBS, he covered the NFL and NCAA basketball, tennis’ US Open and golf, including The Masters.  For 2010, he is concluding those duties and will serve as the play-by-play voice of baseball’s San Diego Padres.  In 2006 and 2007, Enberg called Thursday night and postseason NFL games for Westwood One radio.

A member of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame, Enberg has won the Victor Award (top sportscaster of the last 25 years), the Ronald Reagan Media Award and the Curt Gowdy Media Award from the National Basketball Hall of Fame.   He also has a star on the Hollywood Hall of Fame.  Enberg has been the spokesperson for the CoSIDA Academic All-America program for nearly 20 years and was inducted into its Hall of Fame as an honorary member in 1998. 

Enberg was born in Mount Clemens, Michigan.   Following high school in Armada, Michigan, he played college baseball and earned a bachelor's degree in 1957 at Central Michigan.  He then went to graduate school at Indiana University, where he earned master's and doctorate degrees in health sciences.  While at Indiana, Enberg voiced the first radio broadcast of the Little 500, the bicycle racing event popularized in the film Breaking Away. He was also the play-by-play announcer for IU football and basketball games.  From 1961 to 1965 he was an assistant professor and baseball coach at Cal State Northridge, then known as San Fernando Valley State College.

In 1965, Enberg left his career in education and entered sportscasting fulltime.  He became the voice of the California Angels, UCLA basketball and the Los Angeles Rams and hosted the popular Sports Challenge game show.

Enberg was inducted into Central Michigan University's Athletics Hall of Fame in 1993. The university named an academic center for him in 2007.  Indiana University awarded Enberg an honorary doctorate of humane letters in 2002. He would be inducted into the Indiana University Intercollegiate Athletics Hall of Fame in the fall of 2006.  Enberg also received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Marquette University in 2009, giving the commencement address.

The multi-talented Enberg penned a one-man theatrical play titled (Al) McGuire after his former television broadcast partner and late friend.  It debuted at Marquette University's Helfaer Theater in 2005. It drew positive reviews as an accurate portrayal of the eccentric coach.  At the 2007 NCAA Final Four in Atlanta, Enberg presented three performances of McGuire at the Alliance Theater.  Those attending the April 1 matinée included Hall of Famers coach Dean Smith (whom McGuire defeated in the 1977 NCAA Championship in Atlanta) and former UCLA All-American center Bill Walton.  The play was then performed at Hofstra University, near Al's old neighborhood on Long Island in New York.  It has since been booked in San Diego, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Chicago and Portland, Maine.  Actor Cotter Smith portrays McGuire in the one-man show.

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