The Archive

Moments in golf history, on the hole where each one happened.

26 of the shots and finishes golf still talks about, each drawn from the survey like every ISOLINE plate, with the story told on the plate itself. Order one as it is, in the size you want, or open the same hole in the Builder and put your own round on it.

A desk plate from $69, a 12×16 print from $89. Each one is printed to order.

The Masters

Augusta National, every April since 1934.

Larry Mize, The chip at eleven, hole 11 at Augusta National Golf Club: an ISOLINE plate
1987 · Masters

Larry MizeThe chip at eleven

Augusta National Golf Club · hole 11
Augusta National, the 1987 Masters. The story

Larry Mize, Greg Norman and Seve Ballesteros tied at 285, and Ballesteros dropped out of the playoff at the 10th. At the 11th Mize's approach finished about 140 feet from the hole, and Norman was on the green. Mize chipped, the ball ran along the green and into the hole, and Norman missed his putt to tie. Mize is the only Masters champion born in Augusta.

Tiger Woods, The chip at sixteen, hole 16 at Augusta National Golf Club: an ISOLINE plate
2005 · Masters

Tiger WoodsThe chip at sixteen

Augusta National Golf Club · hole 16
Augusta National, the final round of the 2005 Masters. The story

Tiger Woods led Chris DiMarco by one when his tee shot at the par-three 16th finished beyond the green. He chipped well up the slope, and the ball curled down toward the hole, stopped on the lip for a long moment and dropped. It was voted in 2019 the greatest shot in Masters history. DiMarco caught him again, and Woods won on the first hole of the playoff with a birdie at the 18th.

Phil Mickelson, Off the pine straw, hole 13 at Augusta National Golf Club: an ISOLINE plate
2010 · Masters

Phil MickelsonOff the pine straw

Augusta National Golf Club · hole 13
Augusta National, the final round of the 2010 Masters. The story

At the par-five 13th Phil Mickelson's drive finished on pine straw, with two trees in his way and Rae's Creek in front of the green. The safe play was to lay up. He hit a 6-iron through the gap, more than 200 yards, onto the green four feet from the hole. He missed the eagle putt, made birdie, and won his third Masters by three strokes over Lee Westwood.

Bubba Watson, The hook from the trees, hole 10 at Augusta National Golf Club: an ISOLINE plate
2012 · Masters

Bubba WatsonThe hook from the trees

Augusta National Golf Club · hole 10
Augusta National, the 2012 Masters. The story

Bubba Watson and Louis Oosthuizen tied, and both parred the 18th to begin the playoff. At the 10th, Watson's drive went right into the woods, with the green hidden behind the trees. Playing from the pine straw he hooked a wedge nearly ninety degrees around them and onto the green, about ten feet away. Oosthuizen made bogey, and Watson, who never had a formal lesson, won with a par.

Tiger Woods, The middle of the green, hole 12 at Augusta National Golf Club: an ISOLINE plate
2019 · Masters

Tiger WoodsThe middle of the green

Augusta National Golf Club · hole 12
Augusta National, the final round of the 2019 Masters. The story

Francesco Molinari led by two at the 12th tee, the short par three over Rae's Creek. His tee shot came up short and rolled back into the water, and Tony Finau's followed. Tiger Woods ignored the flag, hit to the middle of the green and made par. He went on to win by one, his fifth Masters and fifteenth major, eleven years after his last and fourteen after his last green jacket.

The U.S. Open

The national championship, on the hardest courses in the country.

Ben Hogan, The 1-iron, hole 18 at Merion Golf Club, East: an ISOLINE plate
1950 · U.S. Open

Ben HoganThe 1-iron

Merion Golf Club, East · hole 18
Merion, the last hole of the 1950 U.S. The story

Open. In February 1949 Ben Hogan's car was hit head-on by a bus in West Texas, and he was not expected to play again. Sixteen months later he came to the 18th needing a par to tie. He hit a 1-iron to forty feet and two-putted, and Hy Peskin's photograph of that swing became one of the best known pictures in sport. The next day Hogan shot 69 in an 18-hole playoff and beat Lloyd Mangrum by four and George Fazio by six.

Jack Nicklaus, The 1-iron, hole 17 at Pebble Beach Golf Links: an ISOLINE plate
1972 · U.S. Open

Jack NicklausThe 1-iron

Pebble Beach Golf Links · hole 17
Pebble Beach, the final round of the 1972 U.S. The story

Open. Into a wind off the ocean, Jack Nicklaus hit a 1-iron at the 17th. It landed on the front of the green, took one bounce, hit the flagstick and stopped inches from the hole. He tapped in for birdie and won by three.

Tom Watson, The chip at seventeen, hole 17 at Pebble Beach Golf Links: an ISOLINE plate
1982 · U.S. Open

Tom WatsonThe chip at seventeen

Pebble Beach Golf Links · hole 17
Pebble Beach, the final round of the 1982 U.S. The story

Open. Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus were tied when Watson's 2-iron ran long and left into deep rough beside the 17th green. His caddie, Bruce Edwards, told him to get it close. Watson told him he was going to make it. The sand wedge ran about sixteen feet, hit the flagstick and dropped. He birdied the 18th as well and won by two.

Payne Stewart, Fifteen feet for par, hole 18 at Pinehurst No. 2: an ISOLINE plate
1999 · U.S. Open

Payne StewartFifteen feet for par

Pinehurst No. 2 · hole 18
Pinehurst No. The story

2, the last hole of the 1999 U.S. Open. Payne Stewart drove into the right rough, pitched out and wedged to about fifteen feet. Phil Mickelson had just missed his birdie putt. Stewart's putt for par went in, and he won by one, right arm out and right leg kicked high. He died four months later, on October 25, 1999. His statue stands behind this green.

Tiger Woods, By fifteen, hole 18 at Pebble Beach Golf Links: an ISOLINE plate
2000 · U.S. Open

Tiger WoodsBy fifteen

Pebble Beach Golf Links · hole 18
Pebble Beach, the 2000 U.S. The story

Open. Tiger Woods finished at twelve under par, the only player in the field under par, and won by fifteen strokes, then the widest margin in the history of the major championships. His last round was a 67 without a bogey, closed with a par at the 18th.

Tiger Woods, The People's Open, hole 18 at Bethpage Black: an ISOLINE plate
2002 · U.S. Open

Tiger WoodsThe People's Open

Bethpage Black · hole 18
Bethpage Black, the 2002 U.S. The story

Open, the first played on a publicly owned course. Tiger Woods led after every round and finished at three under, the only player under par. The New York crowd sang happy birthday to Phil Mickelson on his 32nd, and Mickelson finished second. Woods three-putted the 18th as the light went and won by three.

Phil Mickelson, One par away, hole 18 at Winged Foot Golf Club, West: an ISOLINE plate
2006 · U.S. Open

Phil MickelsonOne par away

Winged Foot Golf Club, West · hole 18
Winged Foot, the last hole of the 2006 U.S. The story

Open. Phil Mickelson had won the 2005 PGA Championship and the 2006 Masters, and a par at the 18th would have won him this. He hit driver, far left, off a hospitality tent; his second struck a tree; his third plugged in a bunker. He made a double bogey six and finished one behind Geoff Ogilvy. Jim Furyk and Colin Montgomerie also failed to par the hole that would have won it for them.

Tiger Woods, Twelve feet, hole 18 at Torrey Pines South: an ISOLINE plate
2008 · U.S. Open

Tiger WoodsTwelve feet

Torrey Pines South · hole 18
Torrey Pines, the 72nd hole of the 2008 U.S. The story

Open. Tiger Woods needed a birdie to tie Rocco Mediate. From a fairway bunker he laid up, wedged to twelve feet, and the putt bumped along and fell in on the side of the cup. They played eighteen more holes on Monday and tied again, and Woods won on the 91st hole. Two days later he disclosed a double stress fracture in his left leg.

Jordan Spieth, By one, hole 18 at Chambers Bay: an ISOLINE plate
2015 · U.S. Open

Jordan SpiethBy one

Chambers Bay · hole 18
Chambers Bay, the 2015 U.S. The story

Open, the 18th played as a par five on Sunday. Jordan Spieth's 3-wood used the slope behind the green, and two putts made his birdie and five under. Dustin Johnson then hit a 5-iron to twelve feet for eagle and the title. The putt ran four feet by, the one back missed, and Spieth won by one.

Brooks Koepka, Sixteen under, hole 18 at Erin Hills: an ISOLINE plate
2017 · U.S. Open

Brooks KoepkaSixteen under

Erin Hills · hole 18
Erin Hills, the 2017 U.S. The story

Open, the first played in Wisconsin. Brooks Koepka birdied 14, 15 and 16 on Sunday, tapped in for par at the 18th, and finished at sixteen under to tie the U.S. Open record to par. He won by four. It was his first major, at 27.

The Open

The oldest championship in golf, played on the links of Scotland, England and Northern Ireland.

Ben Hogan, Hogan's Alley, hole 6 at Carnoustie, the Championship Course: an ISOLINE plate
1953 · The Open

Ben HoganHogan's Alley

Carnoustie, the Championship Course · hole 6
Carnoustie, the 1953 Open Championship, the only Open Ben Hogan ever played. The story

The 6th is a long par five with bunkers in the middle of the fairway and out of bounds down the left. In every round Hogan drove into the thin strip of fairway between them, the shortest way to the green, and the hole has been called Hogan's Alley since. He won by four strokes, and remains the only player to win the Masters, the U.S. Open and the Open in the same year.

Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus, The Duel in the Sun, hole 18 at Turnberry, Ailsa: an ISOLINE plate
1977 · The Open

Tom Watson and Jack NicklausThe Duel in the Sun

Turnberry, Ailsa · hole 18
Turnberry, the final round of the 1977 Open Championship. The story

Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus played the last two days together and finished ten strokes clear of everyone else. At the 18th Watson hit a 7-iron to about two feet. Nicklaus drove into the right rough beside a gorse bush, reached the green, and holed a birdie putt of about thirty-five feet. Watson holed his: 65 to 66, by one.

Seve Ballesteros, On the lip, hole 18 at The Old Course, St Andrews: an ISOLINE plate
1984 · The Open

Seve BallesterosOn the lip

The Old Course, St Andrews · hole 18
St Andrews, the final round of the 1984 Open Championship. The story

Seve Ballesteros pitched over the Valley of Sin to about twelve feet. The putt broke from right to left, hung on the lip and dropped, and he turned to the crowd and punched the air, again and again. He won by two over Tom Watson and Bernhard Langer.

Tom Watson, Against the wall, hole 17 at The Old Course, St Andrews: an ISOLINE plate
1984 · The Open

Tom WatsonAgainst the wall

The Old Course, St Andrews · hole 17
St Andrews, the final round of the 1984 Open Championship. The story

Level with Ballesteros, Tom Watson hit a 2-iron into the Road Hole. It went right and long, across the road, and stopped about two feet from the stone wall. With no room to swing freely he punched a 7-iron to thirty feet and made five. Ballesteros birdied the last and won by two.

Costantino Rocca, From the Valley of Sin, hole 18 at The Old Course, St Andrews: an ISOLINE plate
1995 · The Open

Costantino RoccaFrom the Valley of Sin

The Old Course, St Andrews · hole 18
St Andrews, the last hole of the 1995 Open. The story

Costantino Rocca needed a birdie to tie John Daly. His chip from the front of the green barely moved, and stayed in the hollow called the Valley of Sin. From sixty-five feet, uphill and across the slope, he holed the putt and fell to the ground with his face in his hands. Daly won the four-hole playoff, but the putt is the one St Andrews remembers.

Jean van de Velde, Shoes and socks, hole 18 at Carnoustie: an ISOLINE plate
1999 · The Open

Jean van de VeldeShoes and socks

Carnoustie · hole 18
Carnoustie, the 72nd hole of the 1999 Open Championship. The story

Jean van de Velde stood on the last tee three strokes clear; a six would win. His 2-iron hit the grandstand and kicked back into deep rough. His pitch found the Barry Burn, and he took off his shoes and socks and stood in it before taking a drop. He splashed out of the bunker and holed a putt of about six feet for seven. Paul Lawrie won the playoff.

Henrik Stenson, Sixty-three, hole 18 at Royal Troon, the Old Course: an ISOLINE plate
2016 · The Open

Henrik StensonSixty-three

Royal Troon, the Old Course · hole 18
Royal Troon, the final round of the 2016 Open. The story

Henrik Stenson and Phil Mickelson started a shot apart, played together, and pulled away from everyone else. Mickelson shot 65 and lost. Stenson shot 63, holed a long putt for birdie at the 15th, and birdied the 18th to finish at 264, twenty under par, an Open record. He was the first Swedish man to win a major.

The PGA, the Ryder Cup and the amateurs

The rest of golf's great days.

Bobby Jones, The Grand Slam, hole 11 at Merion Golf Club, East: an ISOLINE plate
1930 · U.S. Amateur

Bobby JonesThe Grand Slam

Merion Golf Club, East · hole 11
Merion, the final of the 1930 U.S. The story

Amateur. Bobby Jones had already won the British Amateur, the Open and the U.S. Open that summer. Against Eugene Homans he went eight up with seven holes to play, and when both players parred the 11th the match was over and the Grand Slam was complete. Jones was 28, and an amateur all his life. He retired from championship golf that year, and later founded Augusta National and the Masters.

Bernhard Langer, Six feet, hole 18 at Kiawah Island, the Ocean Course: an ISOLINE plate
1991 · Ryder Cup

Bernhard LangerSix feet

Kiawah Island, the Ocean Course · hole 18
Kiawah Island, the last day of the 1991 Ryder Cup, the edition remembered as the War on the Shore. The story

Everything came down to the final singles match, Bernhard Langer against Hale Irwin, on the 18th green. Langer had a six-foot putt for par to win the hole, tie the overall match at 14 points each and keep the cup for Europe. It slid by the right edge, and the United States won 14½ to 13½.

Dustin Johnson, The bunker, hole 18 at Whistling Straits, the Straits Course: an ISOLINE plate
2010 · PGA Championship

Dustin JohnsonThe bunker

Whistling Straits, the Straits Course · hole 18
Whistling Straits, the last hole of the 2010 PGA Championship. The story

Dustin Johnson led by one on the 18th tee and drove right, into a patch of sand among the spectators. He grounded his club there, not realizing it was one of the hundreds of bunkers on the course, where the rules forbid it. He made what he thought was a bogey to join a playoff; the two-stroke penalty dropped him to a tie for fifth, and Martin Kaymer beat Bubba Watson.

Phil Mickelson, At fifty, hole 18 at Kiawah Island, the Ocean Course: an ISOLINE plate
2021 · PGA Championship

Phil MickelsonAt fifty

Kiawah Island, the Ocean Course · hole 18
Kiawah Island, the last hole of the 2021 PGA Championship. The story

Phil Mickelson came to the 18th two strokes clear. His 9-iron from 174 yards finished about fifteen feet right of the flag, and the crowd broke through the ropes and filled the fairway around him. Two putts later he was the oldest major champion, at fifty years and eleven months.

Championship ground

Every championship course we can draw.

221 courses that have held a major, a Ryder Cup, a U.S. Open of any kind or a USGA amateur championship. Open any one of them in the Builder and draw the hole you played, or the one you watched.

England

Northern Ireland

Scotland

  • CarnoustieThe Open 1931, 1937, 1953, 1968, 1975, 1999, 2007, 2018
  • MuirfieldThe Open 1892, 1896, 1901, 1906, 1912, 1929, 1935, 1948, 1959, 1966, 1972, 1980, 1987, 1992, 2002, 2013
  • MusselburghThe Open 1874, 1877, 1880, 1883, 1886, 1889
  • PrestwickThe Open 1860, 1861, 1862, 1863, 1864, 1865, 1866, 1867, 1868, 1869, 1870, 1872, 1875, 1878, 1881, 1884, 1887, 1890, 1893, 1898, 1903, 1908, 1914, 1925
  • Royal TroonThe Open 1923, 1950, 1962, 1973, 1982, 1989, 1997, 2004, 2016, 2024
  • The Old Course, St AndrewsThe Open 1873, 1876, 1879, 1882, 1885, 1888, 1891, 1895, 1900, 1905, 1910, 1921, 1927, 1933, 1939, 1946, 1955, 1957, 1960, 1964, 1970, 1978, 1984, 1990, 1995, 2000, 2005, 2010, 2015, 2022
  • TurnberryThe Open 1977, 1986, 1994, 2009

Alabama

  • Shoal CreekPGA Championship 1984, 1990; U.S. Women's Open 2018

Alaska

Arizona

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Florida

Georgia

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Indiana

Kansas

Kentucky

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

North Carolina

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

Tennessee

Texas

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming