When golf fans hear the name Hal Sutton, they think of one thing: “Be the right club tuhDAY!” It is undoubtedly Sutton’s most famous shot, and it came on the final hole of the 2000 Players Championship, which he won by one stroke over prime Tiger Woods.
But was it the best shot Sutton’s ever hit? The best a shot has ever felt? Fortunately, we got to ask him that question on this week’s episode of The Loop podcast, which Sutton joined as our guest to preview this week’s Players Championship, a tournament Sutton won twice.
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Sutton’s answer? Yes and no.
“Well, you know, the 5-iron I hit against [Jack] Nicklaus at Riviera was pretty good, too,” said Sutton, referring to the final hole of his 1983 PGA Championship victory. “But I think there was more pressure [on the 2000 Players shot] just because of how Tiger had established himself and he was turning everybody back at the time.”
Well, both shots proved one thing – Sutton was one of the all-time great giant slayers in golf history. Don’t sleep on his 1998 Tour Championship victory over Vijay Singh in a playoff, either. Sutton was the definition of a big-boy golfer.
To hear our full interview with Sutton, in which he tells us an incredible Tiger tale from that 2000 Players, recalls a “strange” quote from Colin Montgomerie and takes a little jab at Bryson DeChambeau, please, have a listen below. And like and subscribe to The Loop wherever you get your podcasts: