The Ryder Cup is more than a golf tournament — it’s a unique combination of nostalgia, pride and competition. And it has a way of tugging at the heartstrings of golf fans around the world.
Every two years, legends are made and moments are immortalized when players pull off incredible shots. Years later, you’ll even find yourself recounting exactly where you were when one of those unforgettable chapters in golf history unfolded.
But not every iconic moment gets the spotlight it deserves. In fact, one of the greatest shots in Ryder Cup history was nearly forgotten because the cameras never caught it.
Seve’s incredible bunker shot
The year was 1983, and Europe was still chasing its first Ryder Cup victory on U.S. soil. After two days of fierce competition at PGA National, the match was tied 8-8, and everything would come down to Sunday’s singles matches.
Leading off the day was the signature match between Seve Ballesteros and Fuzzy Zoeller. Ballesteros came out hot and led at the turn, but Zoeller clawed his way back to tie the match heading into the par-5 18th hole.
Zoeller teed off first, finding the fairway. Ballesteros, on the other hand, hit a nasty hook into the trees lining the left side of the 18th hole. With no clear angle into the green, Ballesteros was forced to pitch out. Unfortunately, his recovery shot didn’t go as planned. Instead of landing in the short grass, Ballesteros’ ball rolled into a nearby fairway bunker that was about 250 yards out from the green. It was a bad break at the worst possible time.
With a sizable lip in front of him and water looming short right, going for the green seemed out of the question for Ballesteros. Seeing this, Zoeller took the smart play and laid up to a comfortable wedge distance. But, in true Seve fashion, Ballesteros saw an opportunity where most would only see danger.
Instead of laying up, Ballesteros reached for his 3-wood and took the gamble. He pummeled the ball 245 yards and landed it onto the left fringe. It was a jaw-dropping shot. One that few would have even attempted, let alone executed with such precision.
“His shot, some say, barely touched a grain of sand,” wrote Max Schreiber in a dramatic retelling of the moment.
This daring shot put immediate pressure on Zoeller, who hit the green in three and two-putted for par. With the door open, Ballesteros hit his chip to six feet and made the putt, securing one of the grittiest pars in Ryder Cup history and earning half a point for his team.
“I heard that Jack Nicklaus also said it was the greatest shot he ever saw too,” said Nick De Paul, Ballesteros’ caddie, recounted in an interview with GOLFTV.
How Seve hit the shot
Since there’s no footage of Ballesteros’ incredible shot, the exact details remain a mystery. But based on what we know about golf instruction, there are a few key principles that he likely would have relied on to catch the ball clean from such a tricky lie.
To find what they were, I spoke with David Armitage, a GOLF Teacher to Watch and author of The Bunker Game: How to Play with Confidence from the Sand.
Armitage explains that to maximize your chances of hitting a 3-wood cleanly from a fairway bunker, you need a few essential setup adjustments: grip down slightly, play the ball forward a touch and dig your feet into the sand.
Choking down on the club shortens the shaft, Armitage explains.
“Shortening the shaft, even that small amount, is going to give you a bit more control and also help you get the ball first,” he says.
Playing the ball slightly forward in your stance encourages clean, ball-first contact, which is critical to pulling off this shot. And digging your feet into the sand helps you create a stable base, which is crucial from unstable lies like a fairway bunker.
From here, it’s all about your swing and your intention. To give yourself the best chance at catching it cleanly, Armitage says to focus on hitting the ball (not the sand) and maintain a smooth swing with less lower-body movement.
“I want to almost catch it a little bit — not thin, because it’s going to spin up on me — but I want to make sure I don’t catch it fat,” Armitage says. “So I want to make sure I get ball first.”
“Really focus on the back of the ball and try to keep a smooth tempo,” he says. “Legs a little quieter in the golf swing to make sure you don’t lose your footing or balance, which could send the strike a bit wayward.”
Why this shot was so incredible
We can’t talk about this shot (pictured below) and not mention the equipment that was used to execute it. In 1983 Ballesteros and his fellow tour pros were still using persimmon woods. According to Armitage, these clubs would have made this shot significantly harder to pull off.
Seve Ballesteros hits a fairway bunker shot during 1983 Ryder Cup at PGA National.
Getty Images
“Everything about what Seve did with that shot back in 1983 was a million times harder than what it is today,” Armitage says. “Even the visual looking down at the club was more intimidating.
“[Persimmon woods] didn’t have the same profile fairway woods have now. Today’s equipment is much lower profile, which makes it easier to launch the ball. To take that on is one thing — to execute on it is another thing.”
With Bethpage Black bound to produce a few tough lies of its own, don’t be surprised if we witness another legendary moment or two this week. Stay tuned to see who walks away with the Ryder Cup trophy on Sunday.
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