[1] Shortly before his death, Chirkinian was elected to the World Golf Hall of Fame; he was inducted posthumously.
[6] Chirkinian was particularly well regarded for the coverage of the Masters Tournament that he oversaw for four decades, working closely with the authorities at Augusta National to ensure they were satisfied.
He made sure that as many microphones as possible were placed around the golf course to pick up the sounds of the tournament and golfers' conversations, rather than having commentators talk over silent footage.
[1] Most of all, Chirkinian thought it important to allow coverage to focus on golfers and the shots they made, and was critical of recent innovations[example needed] in golf broadcasting that he saw as distracting and unnecessary.
[1][9] At the induction ceremony, a message Chirkinian videotaped shortly before his death was broadcast to the assembled golfing luminaries.