The 28 year old’s dream of making his Ryder Cup debut in Detroit appeared to be in danger when, in the final qualifying event in the Ryder Cup Points race, he made a quadruple bogey on the tenth hole and with Swede Fredrik Jacobson challenging the final qualifying place, Poulter knew he needed something special on the par five 18th to secure his position in the European Team.

Faced with a shot of 274 yards to the pin, Poulter hit a magnificent three wood to eight feet to set up an eagle three and ensure he would be on the plane bound for Oakland Hills Country Club, Bloomfield Township, Michigan.

“At the time I thought I possibly needed an eagle to make the Ryder Cup Team,” said Poulter. “It was the most important three wood of my life and I hit a great shot, perfectly executed. I’m over the moon it has been recognised with this award.”

Second place for the August award went to Fiji’s Vijay Singh for his tee shot on the par three 17th hole at Whistling Straits, Kohler, Wisconsin, during the play-off for the US PGA Championship while Paul McGinley claimed third place for his chip to the final hole in the BMW International Open to save his par and secure his place in the European Ryder Cup Team.

The Royal Bank of Scotland Shot of the Month Award, in association with The European Tour, Sky Sports and Golf Weekly, is presented to the Tour Member for the shot judged to be the most outstanding played during each calendar month on The European Tour International Schedule. In November 2004, the winning shots from each month will be entered towards The Royal Bank of Scotland Shot of the Year Award.

Previous winners during the 2004 season have been Trevor Immelman of South Africa (December/January), Thailand’s Thongchai Jaidee (February), Colin Montgomerie of Scotland (March), Northern Ireland’s Graeme McDowell (April), England’s Barry Lane (May), South Africa’s Retief Goosen (June) and France’s Thomas Levet (July).

Courtesy of http://www.europeantour.com