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Fan at PGA Tour Event Had a Priceless Reaction to Seeing a Shanked Shot

Andy Nesbitt|
Chris Kirk shanked a shot on the 13th hole in Sunday’s final round of the Rocket Classic.
Chris Kirk shanked a shot on the 13th hole in Sunday’s final round of the Rocket Classic. | @PGATour

Sunday’s final round of the Rocket Classic was a thriller, with Michael Thorbjornsen getting his first PGA Tour win after shooting a scintillating seven-under 63.

There was one awesome moment from Sunday’s action that went viral, and it had nothing to do with a good shot by one of the best players in the world. Instead, it was a dreaded shank, something us amateurs are used to seeing, and one fan’s reaction to witnessing it was one of the greatest hot-mic moments in quite some time.

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Chris Kirk was one shot behind the leaders when he stepped up to his second shot on the par-4 13th hole and did his best impression of a 20-handicapper. Playing from the rough and standing just 122 yards from the hole, Kirk hit a hosel rocket 85 yards right into some fescue rough. It was a stunning thing to see, and one guy in the crowd had the perfect reaction to it.

“What the f--- was that!?” he could be heard yelling on the CBS broadcast.

Here’s how that played out:

I think I replayed that video at least 10 times after watching the shot live on TV. From the fan yelling to the shot tracer going way right and Kirk just standing there watching his chances of winning sail away—it really had it all . You just don’t expect to see a PGA Tour player hit such an awful shot, and when it happens, it kind of makes you feel good because chances are that’s happened to you one or twice (or more, let’s be honest) on the course.

Kirk had to take a drop for his next shot after finding his ball in the fescue and went on to make a double-bogey six on the hole. He finished tied for eighth and made a cool $252,500 for the week, which has to feel good. But he’ll probably remember that one bad shot for a quite a while.

Fans found that shank to be very relatable:

What Thorbjornsen had to say about his first career win

While Kirk became a hit with fans for his bad shot, Thorbjornsen picked up a huge win that clinched him a spot in the FedEx Cup Playoffs for the first time in his young career. He finished off his round by draining a 26-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole and ended up beating Xander Schauffele by two shots.

"Just to be in the playoff for the first time is very exciting,” Thorbjornsen said. "It's great to be playing against the best players in the world.”

Thorbjornsen finished tied for third at the WM Phoenix Open last February and was in the final group on Sunday at the Players Championship in March but struggled down the stretch and finished tied for 22nd.

Thorbjornsen, who won the 2018 U.S. Junior Amateur, played his college golf at Stanford and then made the immediate jump to the PGA Tour in 2024 thanks to being the No. 1 player in the PGA Tour University ranking.

Now he has his first win and is looking forward to making more waves in the FedEx Cup Playoffs.

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Andy Nesbitt
ANDY NESBITT

Andy Nesbitt is the assistant managing editor of audience engagement at Sports Illustrated. He works closely with the Breaking and Trending News team to shape SI’s daily coverage across all sports. A 20-year veteran of the sports media business, he has worked for Fox Sports, For the Win, The Boston Globe and NBC Sports, having joined SI in February 2023. Nesbitt is a golf fanatic who desperately wants to see the Super Bowl played on a Saturday night.

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