04/19/24
July 31, 2008
Pavin's four wood from 218 in a hurricane deserved to be rated higher.
posted by BlindAlvin at 08:02 PM on August 01, 2008
I think the one where Nicklaus hit the pin shouldn't be in there - if it had missed the pin, or glanced off of it, it would have been a bad shot The other thing I think is that Woods' #3 2005 Masters shot was well better than any of the others shown. The other thing I think is that Shotput is right.
posted by bobfoot at 10:04 PM on August 01, 2008
There are some glaring omissions, including:
Christy O'Connor Jnr's second to 18 at the Belfry in the Ryder Cup ('93?) Sandy Lyle's second to 18 in the final round of the '88 Masters. Flado's second to 13 in the final round of the '96 Masters. Micheel's second to 18 in the final round of the 2003 PGA.
If Woods or Nicklaus had hit any of those shots, they'd be in there.
Interesting to hear, Shotput, how hard that shot at Medinah is in the flesh so to speak. Sometimes, TV makes them look harder than they really are (I'm thinking specifically of Els bunker shot at the last at Muirfield in 2002 - that's actually not a hard shot).
I have to disagree about Nicklaus hitting the pin though, bobfoot. I've never understood the logic that says if you hit it to an inch it's brilliant, but if you hole it, it's lucky. The pin was what he was trying to hit, and I suppose the point is that it didn't miss it or glance off.
posted by JJ at 03:56 AM on August 08, 2008
I'd have to add Sergio Garcia's second shot on the 16th hole at Medinah Country Club during the 1999 PGA to this list. He was against a tree and unable to see the green. I've played Medinah and that shot is unbelievable. From his location, he was hitting uphill to a raised green with a deep valley in front of it. He had his eyes closed when he made contact, because he was afraid the club would break when he hit the tree roots. After hitting the shot, he had to run up the fairway to see where the ball landed. It was his rookie year and had it not been for a guy named Tiger Woods, he would have won the tournament with that shot.