Bubba Watson can’t help himself when he’s on a driving range. In mid-January, we had a Trackman set up at Dutchman’s Pipe in south Florida, and he was giving me tips on how to work the ball left and right. But not just work the ball, send the ball. Send it and bend it as much as possible. No one really does that like he does, and he’s not to humble to admit it.
Before long, watching me hit balls eats at him enough that he has to grab a club and take a few swings, too. The first is a roping hook, much like that shot from the pinestraw at Augusta National, where in 2012 he triumphed in a playoff over Louis Oosthuizen and Bubba Golf became iconic. On the range with me, he moves his ball with an absurd 129 feet of left to right curve, aided by a strong wind. It’s the perfect segue to finally ask him about that ridiculous shot at Augusta, which just proves to be an in to talking about all the crazy shots he’s played at the Masters over the years.
For the next 10 minutes, Bubba ranked his Mount Rushmore of magician moments at the Masters, which we compiled in an InsideGolf member-exclusive video below.
First was that winning moment in 2012, the hook on 10 in the playoff. But next was a 2022 approach into the 18th that nobody remembers. From the trees that separate 18 and 10, he launched a ball beneath a leaf up into the sky. He was never was in position to watch it land, given all the trees in his way, but he told me it was one of the best shots of his life.
Next came his old caddie Ted Scott’s favorite, another rope-hook from the pinestraw, this time right of 11. Only this shot had real trouble to it, since he would have to play it out over the pond, straining it back to the green. Scott tried talking Watson out of it, but that’s not the Bubba Golf way. He pulled it off, and described it so nonchalantly that I had to ask: Are these 1-in-100 or 1-in-1,000 shots?
“Nah, they’re 1-in-10, maybe?” he said. “Because I’ve done these before when I’m at home. Now you’ve got to do them in the Masters.”
Uh, yah!
Check out the video below — exclusive for InsideGolf members — for Watson’s breakdown of those three shots and also one final muddy, ridiculous wedge he played during his march to victory in 2012.
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