Insider: Top 10 shots on the '09 Champions Tour

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Dec. 9, 2009
By Vartan Kupelian, PGATOUR.COM Contributor

Winning shots come from all directions, every distance and a variety of conditions. That was demonstrated once again in 2009 on the Champions Tour where titles were claimed by wonderful strokes at precisely the most opportune time.

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Here are 10 terrific shots that decided the outcome of tournaments from the start of the season to the end.

1. The Ace

Jeff Sluman faced a 6-shot deficit when the final round of the Walmart First Tee Open began at Pebble Beach Golf Links. At the fifth hole, Sluman knew that something quite unusual was in the making.

Sluman made a hole-in-one at the 187-yard hole and, spurred on by the rare ace, he tacked on four birdies to shoot 68 and climb from fifth to first. The hole-in-one helped Sluman to a front-nine 31 in the successful defense of his title.

The victory was Sluman's first of the Champions Tour season, and third in two years.

2. All-in

The 18th hole at TPC Twin Cities is a par 5 over a lake. Bernhard Langer studied the tricky chip from behind the green at the 3M Championship with the same attention and preparation he gives every shot.

And then he knocked it in.

The eagle chip enabled Langer to shoot 7-under 65 and win by 1 shot over Andy Bean. It was Langer's second straight victory, and fourth of the year.

"It came out a little hot, but right on line, hit the back of the cup, and popped up an inch or two and then disappeared," Langer said. "Before I played that shot I told my son (and caddie), Stefan, 'I'm going to make this.' Sometimes you just have a feeling like you can do it."

It was the Champions Tour's first event-winning eagle since Loren Roberts won the 2006 Turtle Bay Championship. WATCH: Langer's eagle

3. Jay's Birdie

For Jay Haas, the final swing at the Senior Players Championship was as good as it could be.

Haas played an exceptional final round to shoot a course record-tying 6-under 64 at Baltimore Country Club in the final major of the Champions Tour season. Still, victory didn't come until the 18th hole where his 6-iron from 195 yards on the par 4 hole bounce and rolled to within three feet of the hole for a virtual tap-in birdie.

It gave Haas a 1-shot victory over Tom Watson. WATCH: Haas' birdie

4. A Major Driving Force

Michael Allen fired a final round 3-under 67 to win the 70th Senior PGA Championship at Canterbury Golf Club in his Champions Tour debut.

Allen won it with a bold approach to the decisive 18th hole at Canterbury, a daunting par 4. He made an aggressive play. Instead of a fairway wood off the tee, which was the preferred choice during the championship, Allen pulled out the driver and ripped a 314-yard drive straight down the middle.

That left him only a sand wedge to the green. He hit it to 10 feet and made the winning birdie putt.

Allen's drive wasn't for show. It was for all the marbles.

5. An Eagle Lands at Cap Cana

Keith Fergus forged a 1-shot victory over Andy Bean and Mark O'Meara in the Dominican Republic thanks to an eagle 2 on the 17th hole in Sunday's final round.

Fergus, trailing by 1 shot, holed a 75-yard sand wedge shot which turned out exactly as he had envisioned. "We wanted to hit it just past the hole and have it come back and it did just that," he said.

The hole-out was the most dramatic shot of the early season. WATCH: Fergus' eagle

6. No Pressure

Mark McNulty's seventh Champions Tour title came at the Principal Charity Classic in a playoff against Fred Funk.

Both McNulty and Funk birdied the second extra hole to eliminate Nick Price from the playoff. At the next, McNulty nailed a 30-foot birdie, breaking left-to-right.

"Fred had already putted. I knew the line, I had the pace," McNulty said. "It's not like I had a 6-footer. There's more pressure on a 6-foot putt." WATCH: McNulty's birdie

7. A Picture Perfect Wedge

Loren Roberts' 3-foot birdie putt on the last hole was set up by a marvelous pitch. Roberts posted a final round 68 for a 7-under 209 total and his second win in four years at the ACE Group Classic in Naples.

Roberts and Gene Jones were tied with one hole left. Jones hit his approach to 12 feet at the 18th and left the stage for Roberts, who was equal to the task. His wedge from 102 yards finished inside the shot by Jones. Robert had three feet for the win.

Roberts calmly stroked the ball into the hole for his third birdie in the final four holes, the exclamation point to a solid victory. WATCH: Roberts' birdie

8. Two for the Money

Dan Forsman's rally from 5 shots down at the beginning of the final round at the AT&T Champions Classic featured two defining shots. Officially, his winning shot came on the first playoff hole where Forsman made birdie to defeat Don Pooley.

For practical purposes, however, the shot that won for Forsman came a short time earlier, the first time he played the 18th hole.

On the par 5, Forsman went for the green in two. The second shot went astray but Forsman got a break when the ball barely stayed in-bounds. That's the second chance Forsman needed and he capitalized with the birdie on the first playoff hole closed the deal. WATCH: Forsman's birdie

9. Nice Putt, Partner

Tom Lehman's Champions Tour debut produced a victory at the Liberty Mutual Legends of Golf on the strength of his par putt on the second playoff hole.

Lehman and Langer defeated Jeff Sluman and Craig Stadler after the teams finished at 27-under 189 in the better-ball event. Lehman and Langer combed for a Sunday 62 at the Club at Savannah Harbor.

The best exchange came at the first playoff hole where Langer holed a 45-foot birdie putt only to see Stadler make a lengthy effort of his own to keep the playoff going. WATCH: Langer's birdie

10. Birdie Barrage

Nick Price made seven birdies in the final round of the Outback Steakhouse Pro-Am but it wasn't difficult to pick out the shot that produced his long-awaited first Champions Tour victory.

It was a roller-coaster round for Price. He had to overcome three double bogeys in a final-round 71. The key sequence of shots came at the 14th hole, where Price made birdie to begin his march to the winner's circle.

On the par 5 hole, Price's third shot with a 9-iron covered the flag and finished eight feet from the cup. He knocked in the putt and, finally, the wait for victory was over.

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