Quebecer Roxanne Jean will ensure the succession of an old tradition of the PGA, from February 24 to 27, since she will announce the departure of the golfers during the Classic Honda, in Palm Beach Gardens, in Florida.
Better recognized in the Belle Province for her roles on television as well as her voice, which she lent to several advertising projects, Roxanne Jean also became the first French-speaking Canadian woman to embody the voice of Siri, the virtual assistant of Apple.
However, it will not be her first experience in the world of golf, she who has held these positions during a few competitions on the Mackenzie Tour, the Canadian PGA Tour, in addition to presenting the players to a tournament of the best golf tour in the world.
“I come with a completely new energy to the PGA Tour, she says when reached on the phone. You can’t see it anywhere in the world. I really come with a feminine energy. There is few of it [de femmes]it counts on [les doigts de la main]. I have already been told that I was perhaps the first.
Even if it is a particularly different experience from her usual job, Roxanne Jean greatly appreciates each of her appearances in a golf tournament. She particularly likes the human side that accompanies a tournament.
“Three quarters of my life is spent in recording studios, often in basements, no windows, I don’t have access to people, I don’t have access to the vibration of being with a another human being, explains the Lavalloise. When I arrive at events like that which are outside, I see people and in the world of golf, everyone is happy. The volunteers are happy, the spectators are happy, the players are happy, and even more so for two years, because there we understand that it is a privilege to be able to pursue the sport. There is really an atmosphere that gives me chills from day 1, until the final.
The one who likes to describe herself as a “voice actress” will be in action on Wednesday, during the pro-am round, where a professional is paired with a group of amateurs in a more festive day. She will also be on duty from the first round on Thursday until the final round on Sunday to call some of the biggest names in golf.
Voice expert, golf beginner
If Roxanne Jean rolls her bump in the world of entertainment for years, she is only taking her first steps as a golfer. However, she discovered a passion in this sport.
“I’m a passionate, but a passionate beginner,” said Jean. I like to be outside. It’s a sport that is long, we have time to talk and it’s a moment of pure happiness.
Roxanne Jean has been able to practice golf in recent years in Quebec, she who has even been a member of two different golf clubs. Besides, if she had the opportunity to choose a golfer with whom she could play a round. She would opt for Canadian Taylor Pendrith, one of the athletes she has had the chance to feature at events on the Mackenzie Tour.
“At one point he won on the Mackenzie Tour, I can’t remember which year, and I had presented him as the big winner, and then there was something very nice. I think it could be “cool” with Taylor Pendrith,” she said, visibly amused by the question.
“It could be anyone, frankly, but I would have to increase my caliber of play. I would have to play frequently, I haven’t reached that level. […] In three or four years perhaps, when I will play a little more.
Michel Lacroix‘s replacement?
If there is one voice in the sports world that is particularly recognized in Quebec, it is that of the Montreal Canadiens’ in-house announcer, Michel Lacroix.
Roxanne Jean also shares a link with “the voice of the CH”, since the latter had agreed to sponsor her, in 2010, when she was trying to obtain a position as a facilitator for the Vancouver Olympics. She had even beaten him at cards, “and that, [Michel Lacroix] can’t deny it,” she jokes.
She also admits that when Lacroix announces his retirement, she would be very interested in replacing him in order to become the next “voice of the Canadian”.
