To celebrate Masters week, I’m taking a look at the 10 best shots at Augusta National since 2000.
The focus here is on SIGNIFICANT shots. All 10 shots selected came on Sunday and nine of them came from the eventual champion.
Sure, there have been great shots throughout the four rounds of each tournament — but even a hole-in-one on Thursday doesn’t have the lasting impact of a shot that leads to a green jacket.
I also did my best to avoid getting hit. There is only one included in the list, and he is special. While a few game-winning shots can be just as memorable as any other, I wanted to highlight the high-quality shots rather than just hitting one important 10-footer.
So with all that said, let’s dive into the best shots at the Masters in the last 26 years.
For your viewing pleasure, each video used is the full, last-round broadcast, time-stamped to the climax.
10. Charl Schwartzel, third hole, final round (2011)
This is likely the least known shot on the list, but it’s definitely a worthy one.
Masters 2011 is secretly one of the best revisions in the last two decades. A 21-year-old Rory McIlroy led by four shots going into the final round over former champion Angel Cabrera, 23-year-old Jason Day, KJ Choi and a relatively unknown Charl Schwartzel, who was ranked 29th in the world but spent most of his time in Europe.
There were also big names lurking, such as No. 4 Luke Donald, Adam Scott and Tiger Woods, looking for his first green jacket in six years.
McIlroy’s lead quickly disappeared. Schwartzel’s layup in the first got him within two, and he suddenly found himself tied for the lead after his spectacular hit in the third, which landed him No. 10 on our list.
Schwartzel stayed quiet in the middle of his round while McIlroy exploded on his way to a final round 80. Scott looked like a likely winner after posting 12 under, but Schwartzel birdied his final four holes to win by two strokes for his only major championship.
9. Tiger Woods, 16th hole, final round (2019)
The 2019 Masters should be on this list.
In what was a strange start to the final round, Sunday absolutely delivered again at Augusta. Peak times were greatly increased and players went in threes, which caused a strange feeling before customers settled in and the leaderboard filled up.
The names in the picture were as good as it got back then. Tiger Woods defeated Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Xander Schauffele, Jason Day, Tony Finau, Francesco Molinari, Webb Simpson, Patrick Cantlay, Rickie Fowler and Jon Rahm in one of the most star-studded slates you’ll ever see at a major championship.
Tiger trailed by two going into the final round, but Koepka, Finau and Molinari all found the water on the 12th to open things up for his first green jacket in 14 years.
The other shot I considered for this round was Woods’ incredible two-putt from the back 9th green, but it was this shot on 16 that I will always remember.
8. Scottie Scheffler, third hole, final round (2022)
You have to look at the whole picture for this.
It seems important to include a shot from Scottie Scheffler, who has won two of the last four Masters and has reached heights not seen since Tiger himself. Scheffler’s win in 2024 was largely unspectacular, as he hit the course with consistent golf on Sunday.
But in 2022, Scheffler saw his five-shot lead after two rounds fall to just one shot heading into the third hole on Sunday. We later learned that Scheffler was completely shocked going into that final round and felt he wasn’t ready for the moment.
Cam Smith birdied the first two holes while Scheffler was all over the place. Facing a difficult chip for birdie from the third green, his next shot launched a perfect round that saw him to a first major championship.
7. Phil Mickelson, 18th hole, final round (2004)
The only putt I’m including is a decent selection.
Who knows where Phil Mickelson’s career might have gone if he hadn’t made this putt in 2004 for his first major championship?
Mickelson had already recorded 17 top-10s, including nine top-5s, at major championships before finally breaking through at the age of 33 at the Masters. He racked up five more majors (including two more green jackets) after that Masters, building one of the greatest careers in golf history.
He birdied the last hole perfectly and set himself up for, in my opinion, the most memorable winning putter in Masters history.
6. Sergio Garcia, 15th Hole, Final Round (2017)
It’s fitting that Sergio Garcia follows Mickelson here.
Like Lefty, Sergio had endured years of major championship heartbreak before finally breaking through on the course he claimed he’d never have a chance at. Garcia was four years older at 37, but he had recorded 22 top-10 finishes in the majors before finally donning the green jacket in 2017.
Unlike Mickelson, he hasn’t found any success since and still sits on just one major.
Still, Masters 2017 is one of the best revisions in decades. Garcia and Justin Rose battled back and forth in what was essentially a two-man race for the back nine.
Garcia fought back after a spectacular save on the 13th hole and then hit one of the most beautifully hit irons you’ll ever see in your life on the 15th hole to set up an eagle. Yep, hit the needle.
5. Louis Oosthuizen, second hole, final round (2012)
The only shot from a non-winner on the list might just be more impressive.
If Louis Oosthuizen had gone on to win the 2012 Masters, this shot would probably rank second. But it was Bubba Watson who dominated the sudden-death playoff thanks to his incredible hitting.
I’ll save the tournament recap for Watson’s moment, but Oosthuizen shocked everyone with the first and only albatross on the second hole in Masters history.
Starting the day two shots ahead of the in-form Peter Hanson and one behind Mickelson, Oosthuizen jumped into the lead with an iron shot to the front of the tight 2nd green that fed all the way down the slope to the rolled pin position, back right.
4. Bubba Watson, 10th hole, sudden death (2012)
Oosthuizen’s shot was better but Watson’s was brighter and made the difference in the end.
The 33-year-old American made four straight birdies starting on the 13th hole to earn his way into a playoff with Oosthuizen.
It seemed like luck that Oosthuizen would go on to win after his historic shot, but Watson had other ideas.
After exchanging pars on the 18th, the two players went to the tough 10th hole. They both hit poor drives, but Oosthuizen had a much easier path to the green with Watson in the tree. He left his approach short, opening the door for one of the most unbelievable shots you’ll ever see from Watson.
3. Rory McIlroy, 15th Hole, Final Round (2025)
It may be recent bias, but the 2025 Masters looks like it could end up being the most memorable of the past 26 years.
The 2019 Tour would love a word, but the early morning times and the difficulties from the leaders just don’t produce the same excitement in my eyes.
Rory McIlroy started the day two shots ahead of Bryson DeChambeau, looking for the career Grand Slam. He immediately bogeyed the first hole and brought back memories of final round battles in 2011 and 2018.
After recovering and building a sizeable lead again, McIlroy dropped four shots in four holes starting on the 11th as Justin Rose charged to post the 11th.
Standing behind the trees on the 15th fairway, Rory went for the high-risk option to regain control of the tournament and delivered one of the shots of his life. Don’t watch the free kick.
2. Phil Mickelson, 13th hole, final round (2010)
This is still one of the funniest shots in golf history.
Mickelson has a way with theatrics. Be it shocking collapses or incredible recovery shots, he has always managed to be part of some of the most dramatic moments in the major championships.
In 2010, Mickelson was seeking his third green jacket and trailed Lee Westwood by one stroke heading into the final round. Westwood, no stranger to getting his heart broken, tried to do something, which allowed Lefty to take a two-shot lead at the 13th hole.
Standing in the pine straw directly behind a tree, Mickelson decided to go for the green in two for a knockout shot with Westwood laying up… and boy, did he make the shot. Once again, don’t look at the free throw.
1. Tiger Woods, 16th hole, final round (2005)
Expect something different?
That call was for a different shot, but that entry on the 16th would always go down as No. 1 for the best shots at the Masters since 2000.
You could argue that this shot wasn’t as impressive from a golfing perspective as some other full-length swings – but make no mistake, this is the shot that has defined Tiger’s career. Anyone who has ever watched golf can call it one of the best ever.
Something about the way Woods controlled this moment will always stay with me. He followed the shot, looked at it from every angle and seemed destined to do something special. The spinning ball with the freeze logo in the center of the screen made every young golfer in America want to go buy a sleeve of Nike golf balls for their next round (and probably many adults too).
Don’t sleep on the importance of the chip either. Tiger hadn’t won a major in 10 starts, matching the longest streak of his career at the time. He also needed every shot there. Woods bogeyed his final two holes to fall into a playoff with Chris DiMarco, which he won with a birdie on the first hole.
What do you think of this list? Let me know below in the comments.
Image caption: Tiger Woods watches his ball disappear into the hole during the 2005 Masters. (GETTY IMAGES/Al Tielemans)
