Are These Trick Shots Real Or Fake?

By Luke Kerr-Dineen

December 10, 2014

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Premise: Man hits apple off another man's head with a golf ball.Analysis: The stillness of the front-left guy while the camera is in slow motion is the tell. It appears those two guys in the black were added after they filmed the guy in the red hat.Verdict: FAKE

Premise: Man in a tournament hits golf ball off fence to a foot.Analysis: So a PR person catches the "Golf shot of the Year" at the tournament they're paid to promote? Suspicious. Also, how does a ball drilled into a piece of wood land so soft?Verdict: FAKE

Premise: Young man holes a short putt via a big hill.Analysis: Putts like these aren't as uncommon as you might think. Do this enough, and you'll hole it at some point.Verdict: REAL

Premise: Guy hits, then catches, his own golf ball.Analysis: Yes, that's me. I begged my boss to let me include this. May this serve as a solid reminder of what an incredibly average -- but real -- trick shot looks like.Verdict: TOO REAL

Premise: Nine people standing in a line simultaneously make a puttAnalysis: Photoshopping this would be next to impossible. And besides, all their reactions seem really genuine.Verdict: REAL

Premise: Guy chips a ball to friend, who hits it on the fly.Analysis: The young man chipping excitedly spins around to look at the camera once he realizes they've done it. Nothing fake about this; just two good players, trying to be less bored.Verdict: REAL

Premise: Woman knocks beer can out of friend's hand with a driver.Analysis: I refuse to believe people would be stupid enough to try this in the first place, and that she's a good enough player to hit a driver off the deck like this on command.Verdict: FAKE

Premise: Bubba Watson makes a really long putt through a walking path on the first try.Analysis: No doubt here. The cameraman follows the ball all the way into the hole. More evidence that "these guys are good."Verdict: REAL

Premise: Guy chips a ball off a trampoline into a wine glass resting on a swiss ball.Analysis: Look closely: the bottom of the blue ball is stabilized by something. With that in place, the glass is probably just glued onto it, making the actual hole-out less impressive.Verdict: FAKE

Premise: Man chips golf ball off four pots into a cup.Analysis: When the ball hits the edge of the red cup at the end, the cup doesn't move at all -- not a millimeter. Seems unlikely for a golf ball traveling at speed. That's because it's not a golf ball. It's a ping-pong ball.Verdict: FAKE

Premise: Man hits football through a hoop with golf club.Analysis: The old divots underneath the ball is the big tell. He's obviously spent some time trying it before actually pulling it off.Verdict: REAL

Premise: Man hits ball off water spout into the hole.Analysis: It could be that the golfer was able to temporarily suspend gravity, but it's a lot more likely somebody used the bad lighting to stage a hoax.VERDICT: FAKE

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Are These Trick Shots Real Or Fake?

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