Billy Horschel Hits Unbelievable Lefty Shot Leading to Birdie at Valspar Championship

Right-handed Billy Horschel hit a lefty shot better than most lefties can, and that helped him get into contention at the Valspar Championship.
Billy Horschel hit an unreal lefty shot as he chases down the Valspar Championship lead.
Billy Horschel hit an unreal lefty shot as he chases down the Valspar Championship lead. / Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

Right-handed Billy Horschel hit a lefty shot better than most lefties can. 

In the final round of the Valspar Championship, Horschel’s second shot on Innisbrook’s par-5 5th nestled in the right rough, next to a tree. With 127 yards to the hole, the Florida native had to hit his third shot left-handed. 

Then, the 38-year-old hit a beauty onto the green, leaving him a 31-foot putt for birdie, which he made for the ultimate encore.

Let's let Horschel take us inside the moment.

“We were laying up with a 3-iron and I just sort of just didn’t really cut it,” he said after a final-round 67. “We thought I thought the wind was off the left and at that point it sort of switched for a second off the right and blew it towards the tree. There was no way to hit it but lefty and, yeah, I mean, I grabbed a 9-iron hoping it wouldn't go too far and I was just hoping to get it up in the air and go straight.”

Adding another layer to his wild hole, Horschel almost pelted his son with his approach.

“The funny thing was my little boy was about 50 yards it in front of me just to the left on the cart path sitting down,” he said, “and I had to yell at him to sort of get out of the way because I didn’t know exactly where this thing could go. Last thing I need to do is call my wife and tell her I just hit my son with a golf ball. But, yeah, listen, it was a hit and hope shot and I pulled it off and to make the putt sort of was with just sort of, yeah, I mean, funny things happen like that.”

With a birdie on the par-4 9th, Horschel made the turn two strokes back of the lead. After another birdie on the par-5 14th, he got to 7 under, one back. However, he would finish T4.

He might not have ended the week with a victory, but Horschel will have a highlight for the ages. And more importantly, he didn’t have to make a frenetic call to his wife.


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Max Schreiber
MAX SCHREIBER

Max Schreiber is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated, covering golf. Before joining SI in October 2024, the Mahwah, N.J., native, worked as an associate editor for the Golf Channel and wrote for RyderCup.com and FanSided. He is a multiplatform producer for Newsday and has a bachelor's in communications and journalism from Quinnipiac University. In his free time, you can find him doing anything regarding the Yankees, Giants, Knicks and Islanders.