To celebrate Masters week, I’m taking a look at the 10 best shots at Augusta National since 2000.
The focus here is on meaningful shots. All 10 shots selected took place on Sunday, and nine of them came from the eventual champion.
Sure, there have been wonderful shots throughout each tournament’s four rounds—but even a hole-in-one on Thursday doesn’t have the lasting impact like a shot that leads to a green jacket.
I also did my best to avoid putts. There is only one included on the list, and it’s a special one. While some winning putts may be just as memorable as any other shot, I wanted to highlight high-quality shots instead of just holing an important 10-footer.
So with all of that being 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, final-round broadcast, timestamped to the highlight.
10. Charl Schwartzel, 3rd Hole, Final Round (2011)
This is likely the least recognized shot on the list, but it’s definitely a worthy one.
The 2011 Masters is sneakily one of the best rewatches in the last couple of decades. A 21-year-old Rory McIlroy led by four strokes going into the final round over former champion Angel Cabrera, 23-year-old Jason Day, K.J. 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, like 4th-ranked Luke Donald, Adam Scott and Tiger Woods, looking for his first green jacket in six years.
McIlroy’s lead evaporated quickly. Schwartzel’s chip-in on the first got him within two, and he suddenly found himself tied for the lead after his spectacular shot at the third, which landed No. 10 on our list.
Schwartzel stayed quiet through the middle of his round as McIlroy completely imploded on his way to a final-round 80. Scott looked like a potential winner after posting 12 under, but Schwartzel birdied his final four holes to win by two shots for his only major championship.
9. Tiger Woods, 16th Hole, Final Round (2019)
The 2019 Masters has to be on this list.
In what was an odd start to the final round, Sunday absolutely delivered again in Augusta. Tee times were moved way up and players went off in threesomes, which caused a strange feel before patrons settled in and the leaderboard packed up.
The names in the picture were about as good as it gets at the time. Tiger Woods edged out 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 leaderboards you’ll ever see in 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 of the 9th green, but it was this tee shot into 16 that I’ll always remember.
8. Scottie Scheffler, 3rd Hole, Final Round (2022)
You need to look at the full picture for this one.
It seems significant to include a shot from Scottie Scheffler, who has won two of the last four Masters and reached heights we haven’t seen since Tiger himself. Scheffler’s win in 2024 was mostly unspectacular, as he blitzed the field with steady golf on Sunday.
But in 2022, Scheffler saw his five-shot lead after two rounds drop to just one shot headed to the 3rd hole on Sunday. We later learned that Scheffler was completely shaken up heading 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 short of the 3rd green, his next shot jump-started a flawless round that saw him coast to a first major championship.
7. Phil Mickelson, 18th Hole, Final Round (2004)
The only putt I’m including is a worthy selection.
Who knows where Phil Mickelson’s career may have gone if he hadn’t holed this putt in 2004 for his first major championship?
Mickelson had already logged 17 top-10s, including 9 top-5s, in major championships before finally breaking through at 33 years old at the Masters. He rattled off five more majors (including two more green jackets) after this Masters, building one of the best careers in golf history.
He played the final hole perfectly and set himself up for, in my opinion, the most memorable winning putt in Masters history.
6. Sergio Garcia, 15th Hole, Final Round (2017)
It’s fitting that Sergio Garcia follows up Mickelson here.
Like Lefty, Sergio had endured years of heartbreak in major championships before finally breaking through at the course he claimed he would never have a chance at. Garcia was four years older at 37, but he had logged 22 top-10s in majors before finally putting on the green jacket in 2017.
Unlike Mickelson, he hasn’t found any success afterward and still sits on just one major.
Still, the 2017 Masters is one of the best rewatches in recent decades. Garcia and Justin Rose battled back and forth in what was essentially a two-man race for the final nine.
Garcia fought back after a spectacular par save on the 13th hole and then hit one of the most beautifully struck irons you’ll ever see in your life on the 15th hole to set up an eagle. Yes, it hit the pin.
5. Louis Oosthuizen, 2nd Hole, Final Round (2012)
The only shot from a non-winner on the list may just be the most impressive.
If Louis Oosthuizen had gone on to win the 2012 Masters, this shot would probably be ranked second. But it was Bubba Watson who prevailed in the sudden-death playoff thanks to his own incredible shot.
I’ll save the tournament summary for Watson’s moment, but Oosthuizen shocked everyone with the first and only albatross on the 2nd hole in Masters history.
Starting the day down by two shots to the in-form Peter Hanson and one behind Mickelson, Oosthuizen jumped into the lead with an iron hit into the front of the narrow 2nd green that fed all the way down the slope toward the tucked, back-right pin position.
4. Bubba Watson, 10th Hole, Sudden Death (2012)
Oosthuizen’s shot was better, but Watson’s was flashier and made the difference in the end.
The 33-year-old American made four straight birdies starting on the 13th hole to find his way into a playoff with Oosthuizen.
It felt like fate that Oosthuizen would go on to win after his historical shot, but Watson had other ideas.
After trading pars on the 18th, the two players went to the difficult 10th hole. They both hit poor drives, but Oosthuizen had a much easier path to the green with Watson in the trees. He left his approach short, opening the door for one of the hardest-to-believe shots you’ll ever see from Watson.
3. Rory McIlroy, 15th Hole, Final Round (2025)
It may be recency bias, but the 2025 Masters feels like it may end up being the most memorable of the last 26 years.
The 2019 tournament would like a word, but the early-morning tee times and struggles from the leaders just don’t produce the same excitement in my eyes.
Rory McIlroy began the day two shots ahead of Bryson DeChambeau, looking for the career Grand Slam. He instantly made double bogey on the first hole and brought back memories of final-round struggles in 2011 and 2018.
After recovering and building a significant lead again, McIlroy dropped four shots in four holes starting on the 11th, while Justin Rose charged to post 11-under.
Standing behind the trees on the 15th fairway, Rory went for the high-risk option to take control of the tournament again and delivered one of the shots of a lifetime. Don’t watch the putt.
2. Phil Mickelson, 13th Hole, Final Round (2010)
This is still one of the most ridiculous shots in golf history.
Mickelson has a way with the theatrics. Whether it was heart-wrenching collapses or unbelievable recovery shots, he’s always managed to be a part of some of the most dramatic moments in major championships.
In 2010, Mickelson was seeking his third green jacket and trailed Lee Westwood by one shot going into the final round. Westwood, no stranger to heartbreak of his own, struggled to get anything going, which allowed Lefty to take a two-shot lead into the 13th hole.
Standing in the pine straw directly behind a tree, Mickelson decided to go for the green in two for a knockout blow with Westwood laying up … and boy, did the hit land. Once again, do not watch the putt.
1. Tiger Woods, 16th Hole, Final Round (2005)
Expect anything different?
That call was for a different shot, but this chip-in on the 16th was always going to land at 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 point to it as one of the greatest ever.
Something about the way Woods controlled this moment will always sit with me. He stalked the shot, looked at it from every angle, and seemed destined to do something special. The ball rolling in with the logo freezing center-screen made every junior golfer in America want to go buy a sleeve of Nike golf balls for their next round (and probably plenty of adults, too).
Don’t sleep on the significance of the chip either. Tiger hadn’t won a major in 10 starts, which matched the longest slump of his career at the time. He also needed every shot out 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.
Top Photo Caption: Tiger Woods watches his ball disappear into the hole during the 2005 Masters. (GETTY IMAGES/Al Tielemans)
