AMANDA Balionis did not set out to become a golf reporter when she began her career as a sports journalist.
TheCBSSports reporter was not even the biggest fan of golf growing up even though her family is obsessed with the sport.
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Balionis' maternal grandparents in Pittsburgh met on a golf course, while her parents, Tony and Dana, were avid players.
As a child,Balionis dutifullyplayed in junior golf tournaments but, seeking more athletic endeavors, her attention quickly turned to volleyball and swimming.
But there was always a sense of when, not if, Bailoniswould eventually find a passion for golf.
After graduating from Hofstra University with a degree inbroadcast journalism, Balionisbegan her careeras a high school sports reporter in the New York area forVerizon Fios Channel 1and thenMSG Network.
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At the time, she dreamed of becoming an NFL sideline reporter.
In 2011, Balionis ventured into golf by taking a job at the digital department at the PGA Tour where she appeared on shows such asTrending on Tour, Buy a Mulligan and PGA Tour Live.
It would prove a life-changing moment.
Five years later, Balionis moved to San Diego to work forCallaway Golfas an on-camera host and personality for the golf manufacturer's digital and social channels.
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Her big break then came when she covered the2016 PGA Championship at Baltusrol Golf Club in Springfield, New Jersey, for Turner Sports.
It was there she caught the eye of CBS Sports, who hired her the followingyear.
She now covers virtually every golf tournamentfor CBS Sportsand willbe as familiar a face at the PGA Championship in Oak Hill this week as Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm or Jim Nantz.
"I never expected to be in the golf world. My dream was always to be an NFL sideline reporter,"Balionis told Sports Illustrated.
"Your journey rarely looks the way you think it's gonna look. Especially when you graduate college.
"I'm so happy that I stayed open to something that I really did not think I wanted. I'm so thankful for the younger me, for jumping into this.
"I was doing college and high school sports in New York and there was something in my gut that said, 'Get out of your comfort zone.' It was a huge leap of faith.
"People were telling me it was career suicide to leave TV to work for a website, PGATour.com. I listened to my gut, and obviously it paid off 10 years later.
"It took a decade to get to the dream job. I can't ever imagine my life without golf now. It's very much a part of me."
Balionisis considered a key figure in the CBS Sports broadcast team and is well-liked and highly-regarded by most PGA Tour pros.
“I think Amanda is a breath of fresh air,” CBS Sports chairman Sean McManustold theSan Diego Tribune.
"She adds a different perspective to our coverage. She has a lot of credibility with golfers, and they respond well to her.”
Legendary golf anchor Nantz is also a huge fan.
“She is unflappable. It’s live TV – no prompter, no notes, just knowledge," Nantz said.
"And it’s delivered with warmth and kindness – a reflection of who she truly is.”
Perhaps her most memorable moment came after the 2020 Masters when Dustin Johnson broke down and cried during their post-tournament interview.
"He was wearing the green jacket on the practice putting green, Tiger [Woods] had just put it on him and it really just hit him in that moment that he'd accomplished his childhood dream," Balionis told The Big Lead.
"You know, he grew up an hour away from this golf course. This wasthe oneand when I asked him the question, I think he really took himself back to when he was a little kid dreaming of the moment and it finally hit him.
"It was pretty incredible to see because we usually see a very in-control Dustin Johnson and we kind of got a peek behind the curtain, which I think was wonderful."
Outside of golf,Balionis works with the charity K9 for Warriors, which helps to train dogs to become service animals for post-9/11 military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.
She is trained as a yoga teacher.
In March 2022, Balionis married former University of North Carolina and Baltimore Ravens quarterback Bryn Renner.
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"I have the dream right now,"Balionis told SI.
"I do every golf tournament for CBS, then I do half season of the NFL and it is so perfect, I wouldn't change a thing."
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