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Sportscaster Dan Hicks, who was the voice of golf, Olympic swimming and Notre Dame football during a 35-year career at NBC Sports, has died, his family and NBC announced Thursday. He was 64.
Hicks died late Wednesday in Connecticut. He died of an acute illness, according to his wife, ESPN broadcaster Hannah Storm.
“Our family is heartbroken by the sudden and unexpected passing of Dan,” Storm said in a statement posted to social media. “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.
“Dan was truly one of a kind and, quite simply, the person everyone wanted to be around. When he walked into a room, he brought the energy, the laughter and the people together. He was endlessly kind, thoughtful and funny, and he made everyone feel like they mattered.”
Hicks was best known as the lead announcer for golf, as well as swimming and skiing at the Olympics and Notre Dame football. He joined NBC in 1992 following three years at CNN.
“I’m incredibly lucky to stay at one place this long. It takes a lot of things going your way as far as NBC continuing to have the properties that I’ve been a part of through the years,” he said during an Associated Press interview in September. “So lots of variables, lots of things that can happen in your career. But I think I appreciate it more and more the longer it’s been.”
Golf was Hicks’ favorite sport. He was on the call for 27 tournament victories by Tiger Woods, including three at the U.S. Open. Hicks was a tower announcer from 1995-99 before taking over as the main voice in 2000.
“This is a tough one, I mean really tough,” his golf broadcast colleague and friend Robert Maltbie told Golf Channel.
He called 27 U.S. Opens and 23 U.S. Women’s Opens as well as the Ryder Cup, PGA Tour and British Open.
“Dan’s voice filled our living rooms with his steady narration of countless golf broadcasts, calling some of the game’s biggest moments,” the PGA Tour said in a statement. “The sound of his voice is woven into our memories of the game, and the warmth he brought to the broadcast was matched only by the kindness he showed those around him.”
USGA CEO Mike Whan added: “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.”
Hicks also called swimming at the Olympics eight times with Rowdy Gaines. The duo chronicled Michael Phelps’ eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games and Katie Ledecky’s 14 medals across four Olympics (2012-24).
“Dan Hicks was an extraordinary colleague, friend and person,” NBC Sports’ Rick Cordella, Sam Flood and Molly Solomon said in a statement. “He was an exceptional storyteller and caller of games and events who elevated some of the biggest moments in sports history.
“From Olympic swimming and skiing to Notre Dame Football, numerous other high-profile events and especially as the signature voice of our golf coverage for the last 26 years, Dan’s blend of knowledge style, enthusiasm and humor informed and entertained fans for decades. But far beyond his on-air excellence, Dan was a better person who welcomed teammates with a smile, a joke, or a word of encouragement, sometimes all three in the same sentence.”
This was Hicks’ seventh season calling Notre Dame games. He did it from 2013-16 before returning in 2024. He was scheduled to be on the call for the Fighting Irish’s game Saturday against Boston College.
Hicks is survived by Storm and their three daughters, Hannah, Ellery and Riley.
“Our three daughters and I are heartbroken,” Storm said in her statement. “We are grateful for the love and support surrounding our family during this incredibly difficult time. There are simply no words to express how much he will be missed.”
