The most famous moments from The Masters

Officially known as the "Augusta National Invitation Tournament," the inaugural event that was unofficially known as the Masters was won by Missouri native Horton Smith. Smith topped Craig Wood by one shot, while tournament co-founder and Augusta National designer Bobby Jones finished 10 strokes off the lead.

The second installment of the Masters is remembered for one of the most remarkable shots in the history of the grand game. Dubbed the "shot heard 'round the world," Gene Sarazen holed out with a 4-wood from a reported 235 yards for a double-eagle on the par-5 15th hole in the final round. It seemed almost anticlimatic when Sarazen beat Craig Wood in a 36-hole playoff the next day. 

Four rounds weren't enough to determine a winner at Augusta in 1954, and golf fans of the time benefited from that as legends Ben Hogan and Sam Snead, who combined to win the previous three Masters, went head to head in Monday's 18-hole playoff. According to pgatour.com., neither competitor talked much during the playoff. In the end, Snead won the playoff by one shot for his third and final Masters crown.

Ken Venturi was the low amateur at the 1956 Masters, but he probably should have won the event. Venturi led throughout the tournament but shot a disastrous 8-over-par 80 on Sunday. That opened the door for Jack Burke Jr. to make up an eight-shot deficit and edge the 24-year-old Venturi by one stroke. Venturi never earned a green jacket, but he won the 1964 U.S. Open for his only major victory.

Venturi endured another near miss at the 1960 installment of the tournament. That's because Arnold Palmer birdied the final two holes to beat Venturi by one stroke. According to the PGA Tour, at the time, Palmer's back-to-back finishing holes with birdie marked the first time that happened in the tournament's history. 

At the tender age of 23, Jack Nicklaus officially began his love affair with Augusta National and the Masters. It was a successful 3-foot putt for par on the final hole of the tournament that gave Nicklaus a one-shot victory over Tony Lema and his first green jacket in 1963. He would go on to win the Masters five more times. Those six titles are still a record.

In perhaps the strangest finish in Masters history, Argentine Roberto De Vicenzo appeared headed for a playoff with Bob Goalby. However, De Vicenzo's pairing partner, Tommy Aaron, marked a "4" on the scorecard for De Vicenzo on the 17th, when he actually made a birdie 3. De Vicenzo never caught the error and signed the card with the wrong score, which according to USGA rules, made his card official and gave Goalby a one-shot victory. 

In one of the more competitive, and certainly entertaining, final rounds in Masters history, golf greats Jack Nicklaus, Johnny Miller and Tom Weiskopf were set to go down to the wire for the green jacket. In the end, Nicklaus vaulted into the lead for good after he sank a 40-foot putt on the 16th hole that ultimately paved the way for a fifth Masters victory.

Gary Player's third Masters title might have been the sweetest. In 1978, the legendary South African began the final round at eight strokes off the lead, but he made birdie on seven of his final 10 holes to finish with a 64 and sit atop the leaderboard while in the clubhouse. It held up, and Player added another memorable performance to his Hall of Fame resume.  

Up until 1976, if needed the Masters winner would be determined the day after the final round, immediately prior to then, with an 18-hole playoff. But that was switched to a sudden-death version in '76. At the 1979 tournament the first sudden-death playoff was held, as Fuzzy Zoeller won his first of two majors by beating Ed Sneed and Tom Watson on the second extra hole.

Considered by many to be the greatest moment in Masters history, 46-year-old Jack Nicklaus played a back nine to remember  en route to his sixth Masters championship — and record 18th major title. The Golden Bear rallied with an impressive 30 for the final nine holes to become the oldest golfer to win the Masters, doing so in emotional fashion and one shot ahead of Tom Kite and Greg Norman.

The three-way playoff in 1987 featured two of golf's greats in Seve Ballesteros and Greg Norman. The third member was homegrown Augusta product Larry Mize. In stunning fashion, it would be the local boy left standing. On the second extra hole, and with Ballesteros out of the playoff, Mize was off the green, roughly 30 feet from the pin on his third shot at the par-4 11th. Norman was lying three on the fringe, but Mize perfectly executed a pitch-and-run into the cup. The Shark missed his long birdie chance, giving the Augusta boy his only major title. 

Leading after the second and third rounds, Sandy Lyle looked in good shape to claim his second major championship in 1988. However, the Scotsman struggled most of the day on Sunday and found himself tied for the lead heading into the 72nd hole. His tee shot on 18 found a fairway bunker, but he knocked his approach with a 7-iron by the pin and on a slope of the green that resulted in his ball rolling back to within some 10 feet of the cup. Lyle drained the birdie putt and raised his arms in jubilation with a little dance for the fun of it.

Though only 5-feet-4, "Wee" Ian Woosnam stood tall above the Masters field in 1991. Woosnam was tied with Jose Maria Olazabal and Tom Watson heading into the final hole on Sunday. But when Olazabal bogeyed and Watson stumbled to a double bogey, Woosnam needed only to make an 8-foot putt for par and the win. He did, for the only major victory of his career.

Golf fans, and maybe even the man himself, are still wondering how Fred Couples' tee shot on the par-3 12th hole in the final round of the 1992 Masters did not end up in Rae's Creek. Playing with the lead, and considered the game's best at the time, Couples missed short of the green but somehow his ball stuck in the secondary cut and stayed dry. He then flopped one of the best pitches of his career to within a few feet of the cup then made par en route to his only major title.

It was a bittersweet and definitely emotional weekend for Ben Crenshaw at Augusta in '95. Just days before the tournament, Crenshaw's mentor and instructor, Harvey Penick, passed away. Crenshaw attended the funeral on the eve of the first round but returned to play some of the most inspired golf of his career. He ultimately edged Davis Love III then broke down in tears when it was over.

Simply put Greg Norman was snakebit at Augusta with three second-place finishes, the last coming in 1996. That year, the Shark led after each of the first three rounds, but a final-round 78 doomed his chances again. It also opened the door for Nick Faldo to make up a six-shot deficit with a 67 and finish a remarkable five strokes better than Norman for his third green jacket.

Among all his championships and career accomplishments, Woods' dominating victory for his first Masters title in 1997 might be at the top of the list. He won the event by a record 12 shots over runner-up Tom Kite to become the youngest Masters champ, at age 21. Woods also became the first non-Caucasian golfer to win a green jacket.

Before that other famous left-hander claimed his first major victory at the famed Augusta National track, there was one of that ilk to make history on two fronts. Mike Weir enjoyed a breakout season in 2003, highlighted by topping Len Mattiace in a playoff to become the first lefty to win the Masters. In addition to that feat, Weir also remains the only Canadian golfer to win the tournament.

At age 33, Phil Mickelson was finally able to call himself a major champion. And it came at a place that would be become like a second home to him. In 2004 Mickelson needed a birdie on the 72nd hole to edge Ernie Els for an emotional victory. Perhaps no golfer in the history of the tournament had a bigger smile than Mickelson when he slid his arms into the green jacket.

Tiger Woods' fourth and most recent Masters title was not an easy one to attain. In fact, he needed a playoff to outlast Chris DiMarco, but before then, one of the most improbable chip-shots of all time — in any competition. At the par-3 16th on Sunday, Woods' shot slightly flew the green. But after surveying the situation, Woods planted the ball on the green then watched it make a near 90 degree turn and  sit on the lip of the cup, momentarily, before falling in and listening to the roar of the gallery.

En route to his third and most recent Masters title, Phil Mickleson showed off his gambling nature on Sunday. On the par-5 13th, he was in the pine needles, among the trees, and with seemingly no clear shot to the green. But that didn't keep him from knocking a clean 6-iron through two trees, over Rae's Creek and onto the green to eventually make birdie.

The 2012 Masters is likely remembered for two relatively amazing shots in the final round. On the second hole, South African Louis Oosthuizen clubbed a 4-iron from 253 yards out for a rare albatross two on the par 5 to take the lead. Oosthuizen eventually found himself in a playoff with Bubba Watson. 

That's where we pick up the rest of the story. On the second hole of that playoff, stuck in the trees and playing off the pine needles, Bubba Watson stuck a blind shot within a short putt of the hole. He converted the par putt for an emotional victory, the first of two Masters titles for the young man who attended the University of Georgia.

It seemed like Sergio Garcia's stellar career would be void of a major victory after several near misses. Though "El Nino" no more, the 37-year-old Garcia finally had his moment in the major sun. In his 74th major competition, Garcia outlasted Justin Rose in a playoff to earn the green jacket and finally get that major monkey off his back.

Tiger Woods' return to glory at Augusta in 2019. Outlasting the likes of Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and Xander Shauffele, Woods dramatically won the Masters by one stroke last year. It was Woods' first major championship victory in 11 years and the fifth time he slipped on the green jacket. At 43-years old, Tiger also became the second-oldest winner of the event. It was one of the more emotional moments for Woods and even some golf fans, alike.