Two familiar voices will be joining coverage of The Masters on ESPN. Laura Rutledge and Jeff Darlington have joined the ESPN coverage team for next month’s Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club.
Rutledge will host Welcome to the Masters, a two-hour ESPN program that debuted last year and will lead into the 3 p.m. live coverage start on both days. She normally covers the NFL in multiple ways for the Worldwide Leader, acting as a sideline reporter for NFL regular season and playoff games, along with College Football Playoff games. She is also a studio host for NFL Live and SEC Nation. She posted her excitement for the role via her X account:
Darlington will work as a reporter and essayist, contributing to SportsCenter reports from the Masters and preview programs airing on ESPN+ on Tuesday and Wednesday of Tournament week. He has covered the NFL since 2005 and joined ESPN in September 2016. Darlington reports from NFL stadiums during the season for Sunday NFL Countdown and performs sit-down interviews. During the offseason, he contributes to Get Up, NFL Live, and SportsCenter. Like Rutledge, he posted his gratitude for the opportunity via his X account:
ESPN will have live telecasts of the first two rounds of the Tournament from 3-7:30 p.m. ET on Thursday and Friday, April 11-12, as well as the annual Masters Par 3 Contest on Wednesday, April 10, and extensive surrounding coverage throughout the week.
