Had Bubba Watson hit the same shot in earlier centuries that he hit at the 2012 Masters, he might have been accused of sorcery.

Watson’s was an unthinkable shot hit at an incredible moment.

But to watch the eventual Masters champion hook a wedge on the second playoff hole to set up his win raises the question: How does somebody do that?

“I have no idea how he hit that shot,” says Zach Swoffer, director of golf at the Club at Brasada Ranch in Powell Butte and a PGA pro. “I’ve been to the Masters three times (as a spectator), and I’m thinking he’s just going to try to lay it up front and hopefully put a good chip on it.

“I mean, how do you hit a 150-yard pitching wedge that hooks 40 yards? I have no clue how you do that.”

Imparting enough sideways spin with such a lofted club to hook a ball that sharply is far from child’s play.

Or as Watson told reporters in the moments following his win: “Had to hit it 15 feet off the ground until it got under a tree and then let it start rising (and hooking). Pretty easy.”

Maybe for Watson, a PGA Tour star so gifted he reportedly has never received a formal lesson.

“The guys who don’t play golf (as much), no, I am not going to advise you to start trying to hit that shot,” says Tim Fraley, the head professional at Awbrey Glen Golf Club in Bend.

OK, so duplicating Watson’s already legendary shot might be a bit much to ask for an average golfer. However, Watson’s imagination can serve as an inspiration to any golfer.

And midhandicappers might find more success in shaping their shots than they think if they are willing to give it some practice.

“Some of the most fun things about golf is thinking through the shot and making the shot happen,” Fraley says.

Much goes into shaping a shot to go right or left, Fraley says.

He says Watson utilized a steep angle of descent in his swing and a high rate of club head speed, and that he closed the clubface and perfectly timed all that with the impact on the ball to create a shot that golf fans will remember forever.

“To do all that stuff is EXTREMELY difficult,” Fraley says. “(Watson is) so good, he could probably hit that shot one out of 15 times. If it was me, I don’t practice that shot. It might be one in a thousand.”

But an average golfer is not going to face such a shot — at least not with a green jacket and $1.44 million on the line.

Alan Hoover, general manager and head pro at Meadow Lakes Golf Course in Prineville, suggests keeping it simple when trying to shape a fade or a draw.

To hit a fade (slice) or a draw (hook), Hoover suggests aiming the club face where the golfer wants the ball to land. At the same time, the golfer’s stance should be aimed in the direction where he or she wants the ball to start its flight.

“Then take a normal swing at it,” Hoover says, “and let physics do the rest.”

Golfers can also adjust the loft of a shot. Setting up with the ball positioned back in your stance takes away some loft and generates more side spin, Hoover says.

Of course, controlling all that is no easy task.

But Hoover says it is worth the time to practice.

“I’d advise somebody to do it (practice fade and draw shots) just because it is fun, especially when you pull it off,” Hoover says. “When you’re stuck behind a tree and you need to aim it out toward the fairway and hook it back toward the green and you pull those off, it’s fun.”

Nearly every professional golfer and high-level amateur has the ability to shape shots on command.

Brasada’s Swoffer says that is a natural product of practice.

“It gives you a headache spending all the time on the range working on one thing, so occasionally you spend some time and have some fun on the range and try to hit a hook,” Swoffer says. “I think that’s how most amateurs are going to get good at it.”

Average golfers should find a safe place on the range to practice. “Obviously, if you are going to try to hit that kind of shot,” Fraley observes, “there is going to be some errant shots.”

Fraley suggests that an amateur who is struggling to move the ball left or right should ask a golf professional for help.

With enough practice, most golfers should be able to at least occasionally hit a fade or draw by design.

Of course, winning the Masters with a shot like that is out of the question for most.

“But hopefully that shot inspires some people to get excited about golf, especially kids,” Fraley says.

And who knows? Maybe one of those youngsters attempting to try the shot will one day find himself playing for a green jacket — like Bubba’s.