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April is the coolest month. CBS and TNT college basketball analyst Seth Davis, who started his career by working his way up the writing ranks at Sports Illustrated and has penned nine books, would no doubt cringe at the implied comparison to T.S. Eliot, but the paraphrasing applies.
After all, April brings the Final Four, the culmination of a three-week frenzy of March Madness that allows Davis and his colleagues to dominate the airwaves with talk of Cinderellas, buzzer beaters and bracket busters. When the confetti settles and the shining moment has passed, Davis can devote more time to his other love – golf.
“I moved to Southern California 11 years ago, and the weather and the opportunity to play golf year-round was a huge reason,” he says.
Davis will be somewhat restricted this spring after he co-founded HoopsHQ.com, a year-round basketball site for which he serves as editor-in-chief and head writer. “It’s been busy, but good,” he says. “I’m grateful for the opportunity. People often ask me if I prefer TV to writing, and my answer is TV is more fun, but writing is more gratifying. So there you go.”
How did you start playing golf?
It was all about my dad [political consultant Lanny Davis]. I grew up in Potomac, Maryland, and we belonged to Norbeck Country Club. And when I visited my grandparents in Florida, I would play with them. It’s the best sport for that, something that multiple generations can do together.
When I was growing up my dad had a regular foursome every Saturday and Sunday. The same four guys, and they would have their little gambling match, but they did not pay each other. They paid it into a kitty, and at the end of the year, they’d take the money and do a trip to Pinehurst.
One of those guys is still my dad’s best friend, and his son is my best friend, Evan. And Evan’s cousin is my wife and the mother of my three golfing sons, so I owe golf a lot.
And it comes full circle because there’s nothing I enjoy more than playing golf with my sons.
How old are your sons and can you still take them, or do they beat you?
Zachary is 20, Noah is 18, and Gabriel is 15. It’s not impossible to pick up later in life, but golf is one of those games that’s easier to learn when you’re young. That’s why I put a club in their hands when they could barely walk.
I always knew the time would come when they would improve enough to beat me at golf, but I don’t know that I factored in me getting worse. Both of those things have happened. I’m not that much worse, but we’ve drawn even.
They certainly hit it a lot farther than me, but we have unbelievable matches. Nobody gives anybody strokes.
How did you end up doing what you do for a living?
I kind of always just did it. I grew up going to Redskins games with my dad at RFK Stadium and old Bullets games and reading about those teams, and I developed a love for sports and journalism. Once I realized I wasn’t going to be an NFL quarterback, I focused on journalism.
Then I went to college at Duke, which doesn’t have a journalism program. It seems counterintuitive but it worked to my advantage because no one else wanted to do it. I wrote a column for the paper and hosted a show called “Cameron Corner” on the TV station. My first guest was Coach Mike Krzyzewski.
I’ve always done both TV and writing and never felt like I had to choose between them.
Where did you build up your basketball knowledge?
I was cut from my high-school team. I don’t usually hold grudges, but I’m still hanging onto that one. My senior year at Duke they had tryouts for an open spot, so I went. They were the defending champs so I knew I wouldn’t get picked but I also figured I’d get a good column out of it. To this day Coach K reminds me how he cut me. I point out that they lost two games that year, so maybe he made a mistake.
After that, it was just a matter of working the beat. When I got to Sports Illustrated they had just started the CNN/SI partnership, but most of the writers didn’t want to go on TV. I did, so I was getting on the show before I was getting in the magazine. Then I got an agent who got me a one-time appearance on CBS, and they brought me back the next year to work in the studio. I always say it’s like hopping from one lily pad to another, and I’m still hopping. Now, I work for everyone, CBS, TNT, Fox, Big Ten. It’s just the way the industry has gone.
Considering your connections and travel itinerary, what are the best places you’ve played?
Well, I have played Augusta National. The very first year that I covered the Masters for SI I got picked in the media lottery. So I played on Monday and I could almost tell you shot for shot the whole round, including birdieing Holes 1 and 8.
And my dad took me to Scotland, probably when I was around 23. We played Muirfield, Troon and St. Andrews, and we got on Turnberry about three weeks before they had the British Open – the year Nick Price won – and the course was in peak condition and the grandstands were up. That was pretty amazing. I played Pebble once. Obviously, that was great. I played Pine Valley once. Jay Wright hooked me up at Pine Valley, for which I’m indebted to him for life.
For our 50th birthdays, Evan and I went to Bandon Dunes. Amazing golf courses and an amazing setting but really hard to get to, therefore, every single person who’s there is nuts for golf. It’s like you’re with your people. So, as far as destination trips, that would be number one on my list.
Didn’t you also get a first-hand look at Augusta National’s par-3 course?
I caddied for John Rollins in the Par-3 contest one year. We were behind Arnold Palmer, Jack Nicklaus and Gary Player, so the crowds were insane. There’s a picture of me in my full Augusta caddie outfit with Palmer, and it’s one of my most prized possessions.
But on the second hole, I said to the other caddie, ‘How about 20 bucks, my man versus your man?’ He’s like, great. So we get to the last hole, and we’re even. John hits it on the green to maybe 30 feet. Then he hits his first putt about 6 feet below the hole. I didn’t realize, but there’s a tradition that caddies putt out, so he hands me his putter. Now, there’s a couple thousand people around, and I got money on the line. It was a pretty straight uphill putt, but my only thought was, Don’t take too long. So I do my thing, and as soon as I hit the putt I thought I didn’t hit it hard enough, but of course the greens are so fast that it trickled in. Then the other caddie missed, so I caddied at Augusta and won 20 bucks.
Who was your favorite golf interview?
I approached John Daly about a story in Memphis one year and he said, “OK, meet me at the casino.” I met him, and he was playing high-stakes slots in a roped-off area, and he was in full John Daly mode. The dials spun and he pointed at the machine and goes, that’s 10 grand right there. And he kept hitting it and hitting it. And we’re sitting there and I’m thinking, we’ll hang out, then go somewhere and do the interview. But he just keeps playing, and I finally said to him, ‘Are we gonna do this interview?’ And he goes, “Well, ask your questions.” In the two hours or so that I spent with him, he won $85,000. He was a writer’s dream. He was a mess, but a beautiful mess and a sweetheart of a guy.
Have you ever considered covering golf on TV?
Never say never, but golf coverage is very time-consuming. A basketball game takes two hours and a golf tournament takes four days. And if you want real access with someone, you might get there on Monday and hope to talk to a player on Tuesday or Wednesday. Then you still have four more days, which is fine when you don’t have a family, but I’m coming off basketball season and being gone a lot. But I will say this, if you love the game, and obviously I do, you’re never tired of being around the best players in the world.
Do you find any connection between playing golf and doing live TV, anything about poise or staying in the moment?
Not really. I don’t feel much pressure with either one of them. They’re exciting. Sometimes, I get a little overexcited on TV and have to calm myself down, but the golf course and the TV studio are definitely two of my happy places. I mean, those are fun places to be.
The main thing is a lot of people in the industry play golf, a lot of these athletes that I work with or other broadcasters and writers, so it gives you something to talk about – for hours and hours if you want. And it’s a good hang. If you really want to understand someone’s personality, play golf with them. Beyond that, it certainly teaches you humility.