"Most Clutch Shot of My Life"

Some of the most critical shots in a player's career aren't always the ones you see on TV. They aren't for the lead of a PGA Tour event, and they aren't filmed for social media. In fact, almost none of the fans watching the shot will probably have any idea what it could mean, that is, if there are any fans at all. 

Billy Tom Sargent had one of those shots last Friday at the Visa Argentina Open presented by Macro. 

Sargent had been here too often, and the old feelings came flooding back. For the fifth time in his career, Billy Tom (most everyone calls him "BT") started the season as a conditional member of the Korn Ferry Tour. For conditional members, a made cut can mean a season full of starts, while a missed cut might mean the end of playing opportunities. 

All BT needed to do was make a par on the closing hole at the Jockey Club in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to make the cut in his first start of the season. Sargent described the 350 yard par-four 18th as "maybe the easiest finishing hole on any tour, ever." That is probably true if you aren’t sitting on the cut line thinking this tournament could make or break your season.

Sargent’s drive was a duck hook that barely traveled 200 yards, rattling off some trees well left of the fairway. His second shot from 140 clipped a tree and fell straight down. The pit in his stomach started to grow. 

Sargent has been in this position numerous times in his career and hasn't been able to take advantage. When I asked him if that crept into his head as the ball caught the tree, he said, "100 percent. But you don't have time to get upset or start thinking the worst. I knew I had two more chances to get the ball in the hole."

Unfortunately, his third shot from the rough was a flier, and the wedge from 115 flew well over the green and up against the back grandstand. His hopes of a made cut were virtually gone. 

The time it took for a rules official to make it to the grandstand gave BT a minute to catch his breath. He took free relief from the structure, and the drop left him some 20 yards from the hole. "I remember standing over the ball and thinking, just give it a chance," Sargent recalled. 

The chip was perfect. It landed 15 feet short, rolled perfectly towards the hole, kissed the flagstick, and fell in. 

As the ball fell, Sargent gave a little fist pump, turned to his caddie and screamed, "LET'S GO!" "It was probably the loudest I've ever screamed on a course." Billy Tom Sargent had just saved his season and exorcised demons of the past. 

On Sunday, in the final round, the 29-year-old Sargent made five birdies and no bogeys. His 65 moved him up 25 spots into a tie for 37th. The valuable points he earned will go a long way toward more starts. 

Instead of heading to Chile for the following event with his season on the line, he will head there with a boost of confidence. "It allows me to play free and just play the best golf I can," Sargent told me as he waited for his afternoon tee time Thursday in Chile.

A chip-in changed his season, and if he plays well for the rest of the season, it might change his career. 

"Outside of Q-school, it was the most clutch shot of my life." 

‍