Gene Sarazen hit the famous albatross on the 15th hole at the 1935 Masters that became known as “the shot heard round the world.” In the final round at Augusta National, Sarazen holed his second shot from 235 yards with a spoon, an early form of the modern four-wood.
The par-5 15th hole, then called Firethorn, measured about 485 yards. Sarazen was trailing Craig Wood by three strokes, but the double eagle reduced the deficit to nothing and tied him with Wood. The shot was immediately recognized as one of golf’s most dramatic moments.
Sarazen and Wood finished the regulation round tied at 282, six under par, forcing a 36-hole playoff the next day. Sarazen won that playoff by five strokes, earning his first Masters title. The Sarazen Bridge near the 15th green was named in 1955 to commemorate the shot’s twentieth anniversary.
An albatross, also called a double eagle, is three strokes under par on a hole. It is rarer than an eagle because it usually requires holing a long second shot on a par five.