PGA Tour rookie slam dunks eagle pitch on 72nd hole at the Sony Open

It sure doesn’t happen a lot in professional golf, but occasionally a pro will miss-hit a golf shot and get a really great break. We’ve seen guys like Tiger Woods hit perfect golf shots like he did at the Masters a year ago only to have it slam into the flagstick and end up ruining his chances at a win, but sometimes the hole gets in the way and that’s always a nice bonus.

Welcome Peter Malnati to his first ever appearance on Devil Ball, a 26-year-old American rookie on the PGA Tour who already has earned over $ 100,000 this season thanks to his 15th place finish at the OHL Classic in Mayakoba. Malnati was playing some solid golf on Sunday at the Sony Open, not anywhere near the lead but just trying to make some closing birdies to earn a few more dollars and help jump a few more spots on the money list.

Malnati came to the par-5 18th hole with a nice round going, and was just short of the green in two. His eagle pitch was caught a little thin, and while Malnati was dropping his club in disgust, his ball flew directly in the hole for the surprise eagle and a final round 66.

How much was that pitch worth to Malnati? Nearly $ 10,000 if you look at what people that finished 4-under made compared to where he finished at 6-under thanks to the lucky break (maybe Malnati makes birdie anyway, but that ball was hustling and probably would have ended up 15 or 20 feet past the hole if it hadn’t gone directly in).

Still, a nice conclusion to a wacky week of incredible golf shots from both the Sony Open and the Volvo Golf Champions event in South Africa.

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Shane Bacon is the editor of Devil Ball Golf and Busted Racquet on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shanebaconblogs@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter at @ShaneBacon!