The Green Jacket: Best Shot of '09

Over the next two weeks, FanHouse will be delivering any and all awards for the 2009 PGA and LPGA Tour season. It will be a collection of anything that needs to be awarded, from Player of the Year, to Best Shot of '09 to Breakthrough Twitterer. It is, simply named, The Green Jacket awards.

Thousands of shots are hit on the PGA Tour each week, so to look at the entire year and dissect the best one might seem difficult. Sure, there was that pure 5-iron someone snuggled up next to the pin at the FBR Open, or the long putt drained for an eagle, but what shot was great and influential?

That is the criterion here. If you were purely on the golf shot itself, we'd be talking about a hole-in-one or a double-eagle. If we were talking about pure zaniness, Leif Olsen might come to mind, with his bank-shot ace at the Canadian Open.

None of those are good enough for Shot of the Year.

That honor comes to a Tiger killer, the man that finally took down Tiger Woods at his own game -- major championships.

Y.E. Yang was hardly a household name when the PGA Championship kicked off in the middle of August. He had won on the PGA Tour earlier in the season, but it wasn't an enormous tournament and most fans probably chalked it up to another no-name who would never sniff the a trophy again. Yang hung around all week at Hazeltine National, refusing to go away even with Woods hovering near the lead all week.

Come Sunday, Tiger was in familiar territory -- top of the leader, and outfitted in red. That didn't stop Yang from playing magnificent golf, and pulling off one of the more clutch golf shots ever from the 18th fairway. Leading Tiger by a stroke, Yang stood in the 18th fairway with a 3-iron hybrid, 206-yards away from destiny. No matter your skill level, from hack to hero, the 3-iron is the one club you don't want to be holding when you need to pull off a precision approach shot.




It didn't stop Yang from hitting it right over the pin, settling 8-feet from the cup, assuring him of his first major championship and Tiger's first failed 54-hole lead. It was Shaun Micheel 2.0, and it was the golf shot that had just about every golf fan standing on their feet applauding a Davidian effort.

Yang took down Tiger, and it was a final approach shot that allowed him to do so. That's your Shot of the Year.

Honorable Mention: Stewart Cink's birdie putt on the 72nd hole of the British Open, Yang's chip-in on the 14th on Sunday, and Tiger's birdie putt at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Friday -- Best Dressed of '09