PGA: The Masters' Top Five Moments

The Masters is a tournament rich in history and surrounded by a legendary aura.

The Masters was created by Clifford Roberts and Bobby Jones, the most legendary golfer of them all, in 1934 and is played at Augusta National which was designed by Jones.

Winning a green jacket at Augusta places a golfer in one of the most elite clubs in all of sports. Even if a golfer has won several Majors, he is not considered golfing elite unless he has put on a green jacket on the 18th green at Augusta National.

Bobby Jones started the Masters 74 years ago as a way of giving back to the game of golf and providing a service by hosting a yearly invitational tournament in his home state of Georgia.

Little did Jones know that his tournament would evolve into one of the most famous sporting events on the planet.

This article examines the five greatest moments in the illustrious 74-year history of The Masters.

5.  Phil Mickelson’s First Masters Victory

For years, Phil Mickelson had been labeled as the guy who just couldn’t win a Major. He had been close several times but seemed to fade off the leader board each time he was in contention in a final round.

In 2004, with the pressure on Mickelson to win a Major reaching new heights, Mickelson birdied five out of the last seven holes to win his first green jacket.

Whether you are a Mickelson fan or not, you couldn’t help but crack a smile as he sunk that birdie putt on 18 and joyfully leaped into the air.

Mickelson had finally arrived on the big stage.

4.  The 1942 Masters

This is a choice you will not find on many lists or in many conversations about the top moments in Masters’ history. Before delving into this amazing tournament, lets look at the backdrop in which the 1942 Masters was set in.

Four months earlier, the United States was attacked by the Japanese at Pearl Harbor. Six days later, the United States had declared war on Japan, Germany, and Italy, bringing the country into the heart of the largest war the world had ever seen.

Every man in the country had already registered for the war or knew that he would soon be drafted.

This included Ben Hogan and Byron Nelson, both of whom registered for the war not long after Pearl Harbor. Most predicted that Hogan and Nelson would be called into service very shortly—by the end of 1942 at the very latest.

The Masters had already been cancelled for the following year, and the USGA had decided to cancel all Majors for at least the following year.

As the 1942 Masters began, many people thought that this might be the last time they would ever see Hogan and Nelson play in a Masters, a Major, or even a golf tournament for that matter.

Without question, Hogan and Nelson must have also been thinking that this Masters could very well be their last.

In the 1942 Masters, Hogan and Nelson showed why they were unquestionably the two greatest golfers of that generation.

They finished the first four rounds in a tie, forcing an 18-hole playoff the following day.

In front of 10,000 people, Hogan jumped out to an early lead. Nelson proceeded to birdie five of the final 13 holes to defeat Hogan by one stroke.

Nelson was later excused from the war because of a physical condition and Hogan survived the war. But, at that moment, Hogan, Nelson and anyone who remotely followed the game of golf thought that this intense playoff could be the last time these two men would ever battle it out on a golf course.

It is difficult to imagine a time like this. The modern day equivalent would be if World War III had just broken out and Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson had both registered for the war and wound up playing one of the greatest playoff rounds in Masters’ history. As we watched Woods and Mickelson duel it out in a playoff, each and every one of us would be thinking in the back of our minds that this could be the last time we ever get to see these two great players play golf again.

3. The Shot Heard Round the World

In 1935, only one year after Bobby Jones had created the tournament, Gene Sarazen made the Shot Heard Round the World. On the par-five 15th, Sarazen sunk his second shot from 235 yards for a double eagle.

This spectacular shot led Sarazen to an eventual victory in a 36-hole playoff with Craig Wood.

The Shot Heard Round the World was one of the greatest moments in Masters’ history for two reasons.

First, and most obvious, it was an absolutely amazing shot. A double eagle is harder to come by than a hole-in-one, and harder yet to come by on the back nine of the final round of the Masters.

Second, Sarazen’s Shot Heard Round the World gained the tournament national and even world-wide publicity.

This single shot catapulted the Masters into the spotlight.

2. Tiger Woods’ Chip-in on the 16th hole of the 2005 Masters

It took some time to decide between Tiger’s victory at the 1997 Masters or Tiger’s chip-in at the 2005 Masters for the number two most memorable Masters moment.

In 1997, Tiger Woods became both the youngest and first black player to ever win a Masters. Woods not only won the tournament but he did so in spectacular fashion by shooting 18-under for the tournament and beating the second place finisher, Tom Kite, by 12 strokes.

Eventually I decided that Woods’ win at the 1997 Masters was a more impressive achievement but his chip-in on the 16th of the 2005 Masters was a more memorable moment, which is what this list is really about.

Tiger Woods and Chris DiMarco sat alone at top of the leader board. The next closest competitor was seven strokes behind them.

Just when you thought Tiger might be faltering and would need to pull off a big shot, he managed to pull of the impossible.

Tiger was faced with an extremely steep downhill, left-to-right chip shot. Everyone watching thought that Tiger would be lucky just to knock his chip close enough to have a chance to save par.

So what does Tiger do? He knocks his chip shot in the hole for a birdie.

Few people will ever forget Tiger’s ball sitting on the lip of the hole for a moment before falling into the hole leading to a thunderous roar from the crowd.

You will be hard pressed to ever see a Masters highlight real without seeing Tiger’s chip-in on the 16th hole of the final round in 2005.

1. Jack Nicklaus Wins the 1986 Masters

He was too old, they said.

He was now more concerned with his business ventures than the game of golf, they said.

His prime had long since past, they said.

Nicklaus had not won the Masters in 11 years and hadn’t even won a golf tournament in two years.

Every truly great champion has that one moment. Just when everyone thinks they are washed up, they come back that one final time to show the world exactly why they are champions.

Nicklaus’ 1986 Masters’ victory was nothing short of legendary.

On the back nine, with his son, Jackie, on the bag, Nicklaus made five birdies and an eagle.

No one will ever forget Nicklaus’ ball rolling towards the cup the cup on the 17th green to commentator Verne Lundquist’s call of “Maybe?” followed by Al Michaels’ call of “Yes, sir!” as the ball rolled into the cup and Nicklaus’ raised his putter into the air.

To this day, Lundquist claims that the roar of the crowd as Nicklaus’ putt fell into the hole on the 17th, was the loudest he has every heard at any sporting event.

In front of arguably the loudest crowd the world of golf had ever heard, Nicklaus shot a 30 on the back nine at Augusta to become the Masters champion one final time.

At the age of 46, Nicklaus’, looking slightly overweight and only a distant image of the strong, bulky champion we had known in his prime, shocked the world.

Nicklaus’ performance at the 1986 Masters is the true definition of legendary moment in sport’s history.

The Masters is the one sporting event left where you feel as if you’ve stepped back in time to the early years of golf.

Augusta, Georgia appears to be a place stuck in time.

Augusta turns out visions of the "Old South" and a simpler, purer time in our country’s existence. Augusta National Golf Course and the Masters sit at the heart of this beautiful southern town and at the heart of everything the residents of Augusta hold dear.

Soon, the best golfers from around the world will be converging on Augusta National; this week’s Masters will, without a doubt, produce some additional memorable Masters moments.