AUGUSTA, Ga. — Jeff Maggert finished above par in every round at the 1994 Masters.
He carded the day’s high score (82) on Saturday, and was 19 over as he walked toward Sunday’s 13th hole.
“I remember it well,” said Maggert, 30 years after the achievement. “I had 222 yards to the pin and thought, ‘I’m not playing this safe. I’m going right at it with a 3-iron.’”
Then, magic happened.
With the flag tucked in its Sunday traditional front-ride corner, Maggert’s ball hopped once, bounced twice, hit the pin and vanished.
“I looked at my caddie (Brian Sullivan) and said, ‘Sully, holy cow, that went in,’” Maggert recalled.
As the first pairing off on Sunday, Maggert estimates that “less than 100 people” witnessed the shot.
There’s no video of the hole-out, but one onlooker was John Cherwa, a reporter with the Los Angeles Times, who wrote: “Maggert stared in disbelief for a second, then raised his arms. He gave his caddie, Brian Sullivan, a high-five and strode up the fairway to several standing ovations from the early arriving crowd.”
Fifty-seven Masters Tournaments were played prior to 1994, and 30 have been conducted since. No one has duplicated Maggert’s albatross on No. 13.
Following the tournament, media members peppered Maggert about what he planned to do with the ball.
“I’ll probably put it on a shelf, so I can keep the kids and dog from it. Maybe it’ll last a while,” he said.
It didn’t.
Maggert was awarded a crystal bowl for the accomplishment and placed the ball inside. Eventually, the pellet was removed.
“You know, when you have kids,” said Maggert, before pausing. “It was probably hacked into the woods.”
In all, only four double-eagles have been struck at the Masters — one at each par 5:
- No. 2: Louis Oosthuizen, 2012, final round (4-iron, 253 yards)
- No. 8: Bruce Devlin, 1967, first round (4-wood, 248 yards)
- No. 13: Jeff Maggert, 1994, final round (3-iron, 222 yards)
- No. 15: Gene Sarazen, 1935, final round (4-wood, 235 yards)
“It’s a little surprising that no one else has done it,” Maggert said of his shot at No. 13. “The 13th is the easiest par 5 out there.”
Seven years after his shot at Augusta National, Maggert delivered a second miracle — this time at the 2001 British Open at Royal Lytham & St Annes.
He’s the only player to have two double-eagles at a major championship.