Hunter Mahan makes a statement with his Match Play victory

A professional golf career can sometimes be defined by one shot (just ask Jean Van De Velde), and for the last year-plus, Hunter Mahan’s entire career has been summed by just that: a single shot.

We’ve all seen the shot before (heck, NBC replayed it countless times this week) of Mahan standing over his chip on the 17th hole of the 2010 Ryder Cup and promptly stubbing it about 25 feet in front of him to lose the hole and the match.

It was a gut-wrenching shot, and for the longest time, it was the one that defined Mahan’s career. Forget that he was a three-time winner on tour and member of multiple Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup teams, all that seemed to matter was that one shot.

But that all seemed to change on Sunday, as Mahan picked up a statement victory at the Accenture Match Play over Rory McIlroy that proved he may be on his way to turning things around at the age of 29.

[ Golf Digest: Hunter Mahan’s 10 rules for finishing a great round ]

Mahan was on his game this week, taking out some big names — including Steve Sticker, Y.E. Yang, Zach Johnson and Matt Kuchar — en route to finale. But while the names were impressive, it was actually the way Mahan went about almost every match that made you stand up and take notice.

He birdied 16 of his first 30 holes to start the week before he found another gear against Matt Kuchar, on Saturday, making 9 birdies in 13 holes. It was a golf clinic that made you realize once again that he has the game to compete with the best players in the world — especially when he’s swinging the way he did at the Match Play.

Now comes the hard part of Mahan: Trying to capitalize on the biggest win of his career. Even though he hasn’t been able to do it in the past, you have to like his chances this time around. He’s swinging the club better than he ever has, and his confidence is at an all-time high. It’s starting to feel like the Accenture could be the spring-board victory he needs to put together a big 2012.

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