7 Ben Hogan
1950 US Open, Merion Golf Club
The Open at Merion was Hogan’s first Major and his first time playing 36 holes in a day since his near-fatal car accident 16 months previously. Legs bandaged and in constant pain, he had dropped shots at the 15th and 17th and came to the closing hole needing a par to tie Lloyd Mangrum and George Fazio. Having driven into the middle of the fairway on the notoriously difficult 448-yard par-4, Hogan played a majestic 1-iron into the heart of the green to set up the par he required. He won the 18-hole playoff the following day.
Ben’s shot was immortalised in one of the most famous golf photographs of all time, taken by Hy Peskins (pictured here).
Little known fact: Mangrum was one off the pace at the 16th hole of the playoff when he picked up his ball to blow away a bug — but, amazingly, he hadn’t marked it first. The resulting two shot penalty essentially handed the tournament to Hogan.
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