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Golfer Goes Viral With Unbelievable Shot Off Tree to Seal First PGA Tour Victory

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Zachary Neel | Last updated Feb 23, 2025 9:47 PM ET

Sometimes it's better to be lucky than to be good. In Brian Campbell's case on Sunday afternoon in the Mexico Open, that was certainly true.

Locked in a tie at -20 under par with Aldrich Potgieter in a sudden-death playoff, Campbell used one of the best bounces of his career to not only stay in the tournament, but to go on and win the whole thing, his first ever win on the PGA Tour.

After a tie on the first playoff hole, Campbell and Potgieter went to the second playoff hole with hopes of ending the tournament. Campbell stepped up to the tee box and did what every golfer fears in that moment, slicing the ball wide right and into the hazard. Fortunately, the golf gods seemed to be on his side, knocking his ball off of a tree and back into play.

Also. What a freakin call by @SmylieKaufman10. Was all over this IMMEDIATELY. Then the organic reaction from Hicks. Wild clip all around.
pic.twitter.com/17q6uQQM56
— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) February 24, 2025

Campbell would go on to birdie the hole and win the tournament.

Every golfer who has played a substantial number of rounds in their life has gotten a lucky bounce here or there, but few hvae had the good fortune to win a tournament because of it. Here's a look at how the golf world reacted to the shot on Sunday.

Luckiest break ever?!

Brian Campbell's ball bounces off the trees and stays in bounds on the second playoff hole! pic.twitter.com/KWBMbGtaKE
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 23, 2025

And then he won his first PGA tour event.

In case you were wondering how hilarious the sport of golf can be. https://t.co/BBCN8BfGMJ
— Mark Sheldon (@markdsheldon) February 24, 2025

This took 50 years off my life. I am retroactively 6 years dead https://t.co/3PP5k8qMTW
— Pat T (@TwerkishDelight) February 23, 2025

He needs to go take a branch off that tree and put it in the trophy case https://t.co/a6ebZYYkAa
— Tweeth Mitchell (@tweeth_mitchell) February 24, 2025

Brian Campbell if he wins pic.twitter.com/cJxhm1hMgi
— Underdog Golf (@Underdog__Golf) February 23, 2025

After getting his PGA Tour card back in 2017, Campbell lost it in a single season and has spent the last seven hears on the Korn Ferry Tour working to get back. After 187 tour-sanctioned events with zero top-10 finishes, Campbell finally got his first win, and will now get a spot at The Masters in the first major event of the year.

Hopefully the trees are just as kind at Augusta.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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