Watch Johnson Wagner Hit Outrageous Skull Shank Bunker Escape

Golf Channel analyst Johnson Wagner was at his best again with a hilarious segment at the American Express that resulted in one of the luckiest shots you'll see

Johnson Wagner
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Paul Higham
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PGA Tour winner-turned-analyst Johnson Wagner is quickly becoming one of the best things on the Golf Channel TV coverage - as he showed again during the American Express.

The three-time winner on the PGA Tour is never afraid to get stuck into the toughest shots on the golf courses the best players in the world are battling it out on.

He's had some nightmares with chipping yips, played some decent golf and also had some stunning results - such as recreating Bryson DeChambeau's glorious bunker shot at the US Open.

And at the Pete Dye Stadium Course hosting the American Express he had another sensational result out of the infamous monster of a bunker on the 16th - albeit via a nightmare of a shot.

As while Wagner was attempting to play out of the cavernous sand trap to the tough front Sunday pin, he flat out skulled AND shanked his effort right into the huge wall of grass in front of him.

They say it's better to be lucky than good though and so it proved as Wagner's ball raced up the hill and rolled onto the green to about five feet.

"So if you want to get it close just skull shank it up the hill on Sunday!" a chuckling Wagner said to end his Golf Channel segment on escaping the biggest sand trap on tour.

Wagner's first attempt was actually a much better shot, though not quite with the same result, as he managed to escape the bunker through the traditional method of chipping it through the air.

We should've know what was coming when Wagner voiced his surprise at escaping at the first time of asking from the bunker that's flat at the bottom with not a great coverage of sand.

“Not a whole lotta sand in this bunker,” Wagner said before hitting his shot. “Not a whole lotta hope for this shot either. Oh, I got it out.”

There's a lot said and written about golf coverage on TV, but Wagner's certainly one of the brighter spots as he brings the shots to the viewers in his own infortmative yet fun manner - and shows relatable nerves and problems when facing some of the toughest shots in golf.

Paul Higham
Paul Higham
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Paul Higham is a sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in covering most major sporting events for both Sky Sports and BBC Sport. He is currently freelance and covers the golf majors on the BBC Sport website.  Highlights over the years include covering that epic Monday finish in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and watching Rory McIlroy produce one of the most dominant Major wins at the 2011 US Open at Congressional. He also writes betting previews and still feels strangely proud of backing Danny Willett when he won the Masters in 2016 - Willett also praised his putting stroke during a media event before the Open at Hoylake. Favourite interviews he's conducted have been with McIlroy, Paul McGinley, Thomas Bjorn, Rickie Fowler and the enigma that is Victor Dubuisson. A big fan of watching any golf from any tour, sadly he spends more time writing about golf than playing these days with two young children, and as a big fair weather golfer claims playing in shorts is worth at least five shots. Being from Liverpool he loves the likes of Hoylake, Birkdale and the stretch of tracks along England's Golf Coast, but would say his favourite courses played are Kingsbarns and Portrush. 

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