Corey Pavin Hits 4-Wood at Shinnecock Hills in 1995

corey pavin stood 228 yards from the pin at Shinnecock Hills and chose a 4-wood. The 35-year-old was on the par-4 18th hole in the 1995 U.S. Open, and par or better would likely give him his first major championship.

Pavin had pushed his drive to the right side of the fairway, leaving only a partial view of the flagstick on the elevated green. The wind was blowing 15 to 20 miles an hour right to left, and he later described the shot as one he knew was good the second it left the club.

Shinnecock Hills and the 18th

The second shot came with Greg Norman one shot behind and playing two groups later, which meant Pavin could not simply play safe and wait. He had to answer a finishing hole that demanded both distance control and nerve, and he found a way to do it with a 4-wood aimed at the right edge of the green.

“The wind was blowing 15, 20 miles an hour right to left. I could see the top of the flag. That was it.” Pavin said in 2018. “I decided to aim at the right edge of green and hit a little draw. The second I hit it I knew it was good.”

Johnny Miller on NBC

The shot landed in the rough in front of the green and bounced up toward the hole, turning a routine approach into the sort of closing swing that defines a U.S. Open. On the NBC broadcast, Johnny Miller cut straight to the point: “Watch out for this one! This is the shot of his life!”

That line fit the moment because the ball was not just moving toward the flag; it was protecting a one-shot lead at one of golf’s toughest major venues. Pavin’s choice and execution turned the final hole from a survival test into the decisive swing on the way to his first major title.

Pavin’s first major

For a 35-year-old PGA Tour veteran, the shot carried more weight than a single hole. A par or better was the path to a first major championship, and the landing zone he found left Norman needing help from two groups back rather than control of the finish.