Bubba Watson’s incredible sweeping hook out of the trees to win the 2012 Masters playoff remains one of the most audacious shots in major history.
After hooking his tee shot right at Augusta National’s 10th hole on the second hole of a sudden death playoff against South Africa’s Louis Oosthuizen, lefthanded Bubba was staring down the barrel.
His ball was deep in the boonies. And the path to the green was blocked by an impenetrable stand of dogwoods and pine trees.
But, after arriving at his ball to assess his options, Bubba saw a gap few others would notice, let alone consider. And with his imagination buzzing, he began to contemplate a shot few players would be able to conjure, let alone craft.
The gap was marginal at best but, with his ball sitting up agreeably on the pine straw, Bubba was convinced he could pull off a miracle shot 164 yards from the hole.
In the broadcast box, Nick Faldo was asked if Bubba could get his ball anywhere near the green. His response was a pragmatic “I doubt it, to be honest.”
One of only a handful of modern players with the ability to summon meaningful movement of the golf ball through the air, Bubba closed his stance, hooded the face of his 52° PING wedge and aimed almost perpendicular to the green. He then swung as hard as he could.
Bubba’s ball exploded out of the pine straw and after successfully negotiating the gap, it began to hook viciously towards the green.
After spending an eternity in the air, the ball hit the green, spun right and stopped just 15 feet from the pin.
It was daring. It was unorthodox. It was Bubba at his best, the man famous for his homemade swing and having never had a lesson in his life.
He would two-putt for par to beat Oosthuizen and claim the first of his two green jackets.
His caddie that day, Ted Scott, who is currently Scottie Scheffler’s bagman, maintains it was the greatest shot he’s ever seen.
Despite earning a reputation as one of golf’s most prickly and curmudgeonly characters, Bubba Watson will always be remembered for hitting the most famous hook in the game.