Dan Hicks, NBC Sports Golf and Olympics Voice, Dies at 64

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Video: Golf Channel, “BREAKING: Dan Hicks, Legendary Announcer, has passed away at 64 | Golf Channel,” embedded with the official YouTube player. Golf Channel’s report on Hicks’ death. Uploaded by Golf Channel on Nov. 12, 2026. Running time 8:27.

INSTANT UPDATE

Latest: NBC Sports announced Thursday that Dan Hicks, its lead golf play-by-play voice since 2000, died Wednesday at 64. His wife, Hannah Storm, said he died following an acute illness.

  • What: The death of longtime NBC Sports broadcaster Dan Hicks, the network’s voice of golf, Olympic swimming and Alpine skiing, and Notre Dame football.
  • When: Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2026, according to NBC Sports, the PGA Tour and the USGA. The news was announced Thursday, Nov. 12.
  • Where: Connecticut, according to Variety. The USGA says Hicks lived in Greenwich, Connecticut.
  • Who: Dan Hicks, 64, an Arizona native who joined NBC Sports in 1992. He is survived by his wife, sports broadcaster Hannah Storm, and their three daughters, according to NBC Sports.
  • Current situation: NBC Sports, the PGA Tour, the USGA and ESPN have issued statements of condolence. The statements we reviewed did not announce funeral or memorial arrangements.

Last verified update: 12:15 p.m. ET, Thu., Nov. 12, 2026

Key Points

  • Dan Hicks, NBC Sports’ lead golf play-by-play announcer since 2000, died Wednesday, Nov. 11, at age 64, NBC Sports said.
  • His wife, Hannah Storm, said the family is heartbroken by his “sudden and unexpected passing” following an acute illness. No other details about his death have been released.
  • NBC Sports says Hicks spent 34 years at the network and called 15 Olympic Games, including a record eight in swimming; the USGA and Variety count 16 Olympic assignments through Milan Cortina 2026.
  • He called all 28 of Michael Phelps’ Olympic medals from 2004 through 2016, including the eight golds in Beijing, according to NBC Sports.
  • This fall was his seventh season as the play-by-play voice of Notre Dame football, and Variety reports he had been scheduled to call Saturday’s game against Boston College.
  • The PGA Tour, the USGA and ESPN issued statements Thursday honoring Hicks and offering condolences to Storm and their daughters.

Dan Hicks, whose voice carried NBC Sports’ golf coverage for more than a quarter-century and called some of the most famous moments in Olympic swimming, has died. He was 64. NBC Sports said Thursday that Hicks died Wednesday, Nov. 11, and his wife, sports broadcaster Hannah Storm, said he died following an acute illness.

Hicks joined NBC Sports in 1992 and became its lead golf play-by-play announcer in 2000, according to the network. He also called Olympic swimming and Alpine skiing, Notre Dame football, the NFL, the NBA and the French Open, NBC Sports said.

What happened

NBC Sports announced the death on Thursday morning in an article by Nick Zaccardi that included statements from network executives and from Storm, a longtime NBC Sports and ESPN anchor. The PGA Tour and the USGA said Hicks died Nov. 11. Variety reported that he died in Connecticut, and the USGA described him as a resident of Greenwich, Connecticut.

Storm described the death as sudden and unexpected. “Our family is heartbroken by the sudden and unexpected passing of Dan following an acute illness,” she said in the statement published by NBC Sports. “He was a devoted husband of over 30 years, loving father to our three daughters, and cherished friend to so many. His loss is immeasurable.” The family has not released further details, and LiveNewsWorld is not speculating about the illness.

What NBC Sports, the PGA Tour, the USGA and ESPN said

“Dan Hicks was an extraordinary colleague, friend and person,” NBC Sports’ Rick Cordella, Sam Flood and Molly Solomon said in a statement. “In his 34 years at NBC Sports, he was an exceptional storyteller and caller of games and events who elevated some of the biggest moments in sports history.” The statement ended: “Our heartfelt condolences and love to his wife Hannah and his daughters Hannah, Ellery and Riley.”

The PGA Tour said in a statement: “We are devastated by the sudden loss of Dan Hicks. For more than 25 years leading NBC golf coverage, Dan’s voice filled our living rooms with his steady narration of countless golf broadcasts, calling some of the game’s biggest moments.”

USGA CEO Mike Whan said: “We are heartbroken by the passing of Dan. He was a true friend to the game and to the USGA, but more importantly, a wonderful person whose warmth, generosity and friendship touched everyone fortunate enough to know him.”

ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said in a statement posted to the ESPN Press Room: “We are deeply saddened by the sudden passing of Dan Hicks, a respected voice in sports broadcasting and husband of longtime ESPN anchor Hannah Storm.” Mark Lazarus, the CEO of Versant who oversaw NBC Sports for more than a decade, said in a statement reported by Variety: “Dan was one of the very best at what he did, but what I will remember most is the person he was: a loyal friend and a devoted husband and father.”

Background: a career across golf, the Olympics and Notre Dame

Hicks grew up in Tucson, Arizona, and graduated from the University of Arizona with a journalism degree, according to the USGA. He started in radio and at KVOA-TV in Tucson, then worked as a CNN sports anchor from 1989 to 1992, where he met Storm, the USGA said. He joined NBC Sports in June 1992. Variety reports that he and Storm married in 1994.

In golf, the USGA said his U.S. Open work began with NBC’s first broadcast of the championship at Shinnecock Hills in 1995, and that the 2026 U.S. Open, again at Shinnecock, was his 27th and his 22nd as NBC’s lead play-by-play announcer. The PGA Tour said he anchored NBC’s weekend coverage of The Players Championship for three decades and worked alongside Johnny Miller for nearly two decades. His last USGA championship for NBC came in August at Merion Golf Club, the USGA said.

His best-known golf call came at the 2008 U.S. Open at Torrey Pines, when Tiger Woods holed a putt to force a playoff and Hicks asked, “Expect anything different?” according to NBC Sports. The PGA Tour noted that Woods went on to win a 19-hole Monday playoff.

Two months later, Hicks called all eight of Michael Phelps’ gold medals at the Beijing Olympics, and over his career he called all 28 of Phelps’ Olympic medals from 2004 through 2016, NBC Sports said. Variety reports that Hicks was NBC’s lead Alpine skiing play-by-play voice at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics and that he shared in a Sports Emmy for NBCUniversal’s coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Dan Hicks career at a glance

Assignment Record, as reported
NBC Sports tenure 34 years; joined in June 1992
Golf Lead play-by-play voice since 2000; 27 U.S. Opens, 22 as lead
Olympics 15 Games (NBC Sports) or 16 assignments (USGA, Variety); record eight in swimming; last four in Alpine skiing
Michael Phelps Called all 28 of Phelps’ Olympic medals, 2004 to 2016
Notre Dame football Play-by-play voice; seventh season in 2026
Other events NFL, NBA and the French Open

Source: NBC Sports, USGA and Variety, Nov. 12, 2026. Table: LiveNewsWorld.

Timeline

  • 1989 to 1992: Sports anchor at CNN, according to the USGA.
  • June 1992: Joins NBC Sports, according to the USGA.
  • 1995: Works NBC’s first U.S. Open broadcast at Shinnecock Hills, the USGA said.
  • 2000: Becomes NBC Sports’ lead golf play-by-play voice, according to NBC Sports.
  • June and August 2008: Calls Tiger Woods’ U.S. Open putt at Torrey Pines and Michael Phelps’ eight Beijing golds, NBC Sports said.
  • 2026: Calls Alpine skiing at Milan Cortina (Variety), his 27th U.S. Open (USGA) and a seventh Notre Dame season (NBC Sports).
  • Wednesday, Nov. 11, 2026: Dies at 64 following an acute illness, according to his family.
  • Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026: NBC Sports announces his death; tributes follow from the PGA Tour, the USGA and ESPN.

Why it matters

For many American sports fans, Hicks was the voice attached to the biggest Sundays in golf and the biggest nights in Olympic swimming. NBC Sports called him “the signature voice of our golf coverage for the last 26 years,” and the PGA Tour said his voice “is woven into our memories of the game.” His death comes in the middle of the college football season, with Hicks still in the Notre Dame booth this fall. NBC Sports’ statement did not address future broadcast assignments.

What happens next

Variety reports that Hicks had been scheduled to call Notre Dame’s game against Boston College on Saturday, Nov. 14. NBC Sports has not publicly named a replacement in the statements we reviewed, and no funeral or memorial details have been announced. LiveNewsWorld will update this story if NBC Sports or the family shares more information. For more coverage, follow our latest sports news or find streams on the Watch Live News hub.

Frequently asked questions

How did Dan Hicks die?

His wife, Hannah Storm, said he died following an acute illness, and she called his passing sudden and unexpected. The family has not released other details.

How old was Dan Hicks?

He was 64, according to NBC Sports, the PGA Tour, the USGA and Variety.

How long was Dan Hicks at NBC Sports?

NBC Sports says he spent 34 years at the network after joining in 1992, and he had been its lead golf play-by-play voice since 2000.

Who was Dan Hicks married to?

He was married to sports broadcaster Hannah Storm, a longtime NBC Sports and then ESPN anchor. Variety reports they married in 1994. They have three daughters, Hannah, Ellery and Riley, according to NBC Sports.

What was Dan Hicks’ most famous call?

NBC Sports highlighted his “Expect anything different?” call on Tiger Woods’ putt to force a playoff at the 2008 U.S. Open, and his calls of all eight of Michael Phelps’ gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

Sources