By Jimmy DeButts
Chronicle Staff

Any tussle over green jackets will be conducted on the course, not on the putting green.

Dick Enberg's recent addition to CBS Sports prompted Golf World to speculate that his arrival would create friction with long-time Masters Tournament host Jim Nantz. In its March 31 edition Golf World published a cartoon depicting Enberg and Nantz pulling apart a green jacket, given annually to the Masters champion.

Enberg ended his 25-year relationship with NBC in January to return to the NFL broadcast booth for CBS. He said his role in Augusta is purely supportive when the network airs today's third round (3:30-6 p.m.). Enberg said he will be used in a limited role and will not infringe on Nantz's duties.

CBS sportscaster Dick Enberg is doing commentary at the Masters for the first time.Jeff Janowski/Chronicle Staff

``They've accepted me,'' Enberg said. ``I'm not a threat to anyone's position. I'm not taking anyone's job.''

Nantz gushed over Enberg's 40-year broadcasting career which includes eight Super Bowls, 19 Wimbledon Championships and four Olympic Games. He said Golf World's claims were baseless.

``Golf World tried to create animosity,'' Nantz said. ``If I ever was that irresponsible on the air, I'd quit.

``I'm embracing (the relationship). Dick Enberg is a legend. We're thrilled to have Dick Enberg at the Masters.''

Enberg will make his Masters broadcasting debut today in Butler Cabin where he'll conduct interviews and deliver the first of two ``Enberg Moments.'' Reviving the highlight-driven essays is Enberg's prime responsibility at the Masters.

``I'm really a terrible romantic,'' Enberg said. ``I love being at places that have romance, tradition and a feeling that no matter what the shot may be you can relate it to some historical moment that preceded it. That's what tradition is, you can't buy that.

``Some call it schmaltzy or sappy. But I'm looking for the beauty in the game. I'm looking with a fan's eye for what might be emotionally beautiful about this particular Masters.''

Ross Schneiderman has teamed with Enberg for 15 years. The CBS associate director said Enberg, who is in his mid-60s, offers a unique perspective to any event.

By capturing often overlooked details, Schneiderman said Enberg can expand CBS's coverage without overstepping his boundaries.

``Dick likes to see things other people don't see,'' Schneiderman said. ``That's what separates Dick from other people. He has a feeling about what he's doing. He's all about emotion.

``There are no ego battles. He's not here to be the announcer nor does he want to be.''

Nantz, a veteran of 15 Masters, was disappointed he could not repay the hospitality Enberg extended to him in 1992. During a vacation to Wimbledon, the two ran into each other and Enberg gave Nantz a two-hour behind-the-scenes tour of tennis' most storied venue.

Although Enberg visited the Augusta National Golf Club 20 years ago, Nantz had hoped to give him the insiders' Masters tour. His plan was foiled when Enberg arrived in Augusta on an earlier plane.

``I wanted to be able to take him around the course in a golf cart,'' Nantz said.

Enberg's presence will enable Nantz to avoid his annual rush from the 18th-green tower to Butler Cabin following Sunday's final round. In the past, Nantz would have a cart awaiting him at No. 18 and be funneled through the gallery to Butler Cabin where he would narrate Sunday's highlight montage prior to the jacket ceremony.

This year, Enberg will compose the montage script from Butler Cabin and deliver the narration. Although he is a Masters rookie, Enberg has called four U.S. Opens at NBC and a pair of Ryder Cups.

His extensive resume would not have been complete without a Masters entry. Although he abdicated his Wimbledon crown, Enberg takes solace in his new assignment in Augusta.

The man who made ``Oh My'' his signature call draws parallels between the Masters and tennis' holiest site.

``That's the comparison, to Wimbledon,'' Enberg said. ``There's a positive control that protects the tradition.''

``I've purposefully tried not to be too biased about what I'm going to see. I didn't want to read into too much. I wanted the experience to come to me and react to it.''

Thursday and Friday, Enberg soaked in Augusta National's aura while appreciating the historical link of the ``millennium three.'' While Jack Nicklaus, Arnold Palmer and Gary Player made an intriguing threesome, it reminded the veteran announcer of their lineage through Masters history.

``They represent what the tournament is all about,'' Enberg said, hinting they may be the subject of his first essay. ``I feel at this stage so fortunate that I can experience the Masters as a broadcaster, I never thought that would happen.''