Tiger Woods — The 3 Shots Tiger Still Calls the Best of His Career

Let’s be honest—when Tiger Woods calls something the best shot he’s ever hit, you lean in a little closer.

This is a guy who’s spent decades turning impossible situations into highlight reels. But out of all the magic he’s produced, there are three moments that even Tiger puts on a pedestal.

These aren’t just shots — they’re turning points. Pressure-cookers. Roars-you-could-feel-in-your-ribcage kind of moments. And yeah, they still give goosebumps.

1. The Hazeltine Bunker Shot (2002 PGA Championship)

You’re in a fairway bunker. Your heels are practically kissing the back lip. The wind is whipping at 35 mph. You’ve got a 3-iron in hand — not exactly the club you reach for when you’re feeling cautious.

That’s where Tiger found himself in the second round at Hazeltine in 2002. Hole 18. Long. Brutal. Unforgiving.

“Probably the 2002 PGA on the 18th hole from the fairway bunker with 3-iron out of there,” Tiger told TaylorMade when asked about the greatest shot of his career. “Hard left to right wind, and my heels are up against the back of the lip of the bunker, and I’ve never felt contact that solid in my life.”

He wasn’t exaggerating.

Tiger hit a laser 3-iron from 202 yards — off sand — to 12 feet. Then he drained the birdie. His playing partner, Ernie Els, didn’t try to dress it up. He just muttered, “UN-believable.”

The stance? Awkward. The lie? Sketchy. The target? All but hidden behind tall trees. It was the kind of shot that made even pros shake their heads.

And here’s the kicker — he almost didn’t go with the 3-iron. He was leaning toward a 4, but his caddie, Steve Williams, nudged him toward the bolder play. Tiger listened. “I hit it so flush it was scary,” he later said.

He’d finish runner-up by a single stroke — but that shot? Still a winner.

2. The Glen Abbey Bunker Missile (2000 Bell Canadian Open)

Let’s set the scene: Tiger’s trying to complete a historic “Triple Crown” — U.S. Open, British Open, and Canadian Open in the same year. It hadn’t been done since Lee Trevino in 1971. He’s on the par-5 18th at Glen Abbey, final round. Standing between him and the crown? A 218-yard bunker shot. Wet sand. Pin tucked. Water right.

Most players would lay up and try to make birdie the boring way.

Not Tiger.

He pulls 6-iron and goes for the pin — not the green, the pin. No margin for error.

Fred Couples, watching it live, called it “mind-boggling.” Scott Verplank said it was “the greatest shot I’ve ever seen in my life.” And both of them have seen some things.

Tiger flushed it, stuck it to inside 20 feet, and went on to win. That shot helped seal one of the greatest seasons in golf history — nine wins, three majors, and one very shiny Canadian trophy.

3. The Chip Heard Around the World (2005 Masters, Augusta National)

If you’ve ever watched golf highlights — even casually — you know this one. It’s that chip on 16 at Augusta where the Nike swoosh paused on the lip like it was waiting for applause before finally dropping.

Sunday at The Masters. Tiger was up one on Chris DiMarco when he missed the green long and left on the iconic par-3 16th.

“I hit the worst eight iron you could possibly hit and I thought I possibly have hit in the water,” Tiger recalled.

Now he had a near-impossible chip. Tight lie. Lightning-fast green. Had to land it on a tiny spot on the slope and let gravity do the rest. Even CBS announcer Lanny Watkins didn’t like his chances: “He’ll be lucky to get this inside of DiMarco’s ball.”

But Tiger wasn’t playing for “inside.” He was playing for history.

He hit it perfectly. The ball rolled up, caught the ridge, turned left like it had a GPS, and just…stopped. Right on the lip. Hanging there. The crowd holding its breath. Then — plink — in it dropped.

Verne Lundquist gave us the call of a lifetime: “In your life have you seen anything like that?”

That shot helped him win his fourth green jacket and ninth major overall. The roar? Deafening. The goosebumps? Permanent.

Why These Shots Still Matter

It’s not just that these were hard shots. Every pro faces hard shots.

It’s that Tiger delivered these when everything was on the line. Bunkers, wind, pressure, water — he turned those variables into highlight reels. Each one reveals something about what made him different:

• Hazeltine showed his technical genius — shaping a 3-iron in the wind from an impossible lie like it was nothing.
• Glen Abbey showed his fearlessness — taking on a risky shot that most would’ve bailed on, and making it sing.
• Augusta showed his flair for the dramatic — executing a chip that felt scripted by the golf gods themselves.

These weren’t just clutch shots. They were Tiger at his most Tiger.