Sahith Theegala

ELIGIBILITY: The first 50 players on the OWGR for Week 21, 2024.]

Theegala was born in 1997 in Fullerton, California, to Muralidhar and Karuna Theegala. He has a younger brother. The 2016 U.S. Amateur quarterfinalist lost to eventual champion Curtis Luck at Oakland Hills Country Club.
Theegala was a three-time NCAA All-American at Pepperdine University. As a senior, he won the Haskins Award, Ben Hogan Award, and Jack Nicklaus Award as the nation's top player, becoming the fifth person to win all three awards in the same year. Won two events in the 2019-20 season, which was shortened by COVID-19, with Pepperdine ranked first in the country and fourth in his college career. During the break between semesters in his senior season, he traveled to Victoria, Australia, for the Australian Master of the Amateurs and opened 66-68-69 to take a six-shot advantage into the final round. Despite shooting a 75 during difficult scoring conditions at Victoria GC still coasted to a four-shot win over South Korea's Jang Hyun Lee. He was one of only three Americans in the field. Another amateur win came in July 2019 at Lakeside GC, where he took the Southern California Golf Association Amateur in dominating fashion. Rounds of 68-67-65-65 resulted in an eight-shot rout of Trip Morris. Won the prestigious Sahalee Players Championship in 2017, finishing regulation tied with Australia's Min Woo Lee and then defeating Lee in a sudden-death playoff. Represented the U.S. at the 2018 Palmer Cup in Evian-les-Bains, France. At Evian Resort GC, in the U.S. victory, he went 1-3-0 in his four matches, his win coming in a four-ball with Justin Suh, his partner. Reached as high as No. 3 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking.
Before turning professional, he Monday qualified for the 2017 Genesis Open at Riviera Country Club and made the cut, finishing T-49th. He also qualified for the 2017 U.S. Open, missing the cut.
He turned pro in 2020 after graduating from Pepperdine with a sports administration degree. Before that missed the cut at the Travelers, Rocket Mortgage, and 3M Open as an amateur. He turned pro and was T-41st in his first event at the Barracuda Championship.
2021 Notes: As a non-member, played in seven PGA Tour events in 2021. His first start of the season was T-14th at the Safeway Open. He also played in the Sanderson Farms, missing the cut, T-32nd at the Memorial, qualified and played in his second U.S. Open, missing the cut at Torrey Pines, and T-37th at the Barbasol Championship, and T-34th at the Barracuda Championship. At the same time he played in eight Korn Ferry Tour events, his best finish was when he Monday qualified at the MGM Resorts Championship at Palute and finished T-9th. Because he finished inside the top 200 of the PGA Tour's non-member FedExCup points list, he qualified for the three-event Korn Ferry Tour Finals, where he earned his first PGA Tour card after a T-4th at the Nationwide Children's Hospital Championship and a 6th at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship. Finished 8th on the Korn Ferry Tour Finals points list and earned PGA Tour membership for the 2021-22 season.
2022 Notes: Played in 32 PGA Tour events, making 26 cuts with five top-ten finishes. He was 28th in the FedExCup playoffs. In his second start of the season at Sanderson Farms, held a share of the lead after each of the first three rounds. Shot a final-round 71 to finish T-8th, three shots back of the winner Sam Burns. Playing on a sponsor exemption, held the solo lead after the 2nd and 3rd rounds of the WM Phoenix Open. His whole family and friends traveled to Phoenix to watch Theegala play the final round. He found himself with a share of the lead on the 17th tee but hit a hybrid tee shot into the water and made a bogey. Made a ten-footer for par on the 72nd hole to finish T-3rd, a shot back of the Scottie Scheffler/Patrick Cantlay playoff. Shot 67-67 on the weekend to finish T-7th, five back of the Sam Burns/Davis Riley playoff at the Valspar Championship. At the Travelers Championship, he found himself three off the lead going into the final round. In the final round made a 24-foot birdie on the 9th hole to get within two shots of the lead. With birdies at 13 and 15, he tied the leader Xander Schauffele. With another birdie at 17 on a ten-foot putt, he took a one-shot lead to the 18th tee. Unfortunately, he hit his tee shot up against the front lip of the left fairway bunker. He tried a miracle shot but moved the ball only a few inches. By the time he finally escaped the sand with his third, pitched up with his fourth, and watched his fifth shot lip out, he had made a double-bogey 6 to relinquish the lead. He finished T-2nd, two shots back of Schauffele who birdied the 72nd hole. In the FedExCup playoffs was T-13th at the FedEx St. Jude Championship, T-15th at the BMW Championship, and 28th at the Tour Championship.
2023 Notes: Played in 31 PGA Tour events, making 26 cuts with eight top-ten finishes. He was 31st in the FedExCup playoffs. In the season-opening Fortinet Championship, was T-6th, five shots back of winner Max Homa. Finished T-5th at the Zozo Championship, three shots back of winner Keegan Bradley. Was T-4th at the Farmers Insurance Open, four shots back of winner Max Homa. Shot a final-round 66 at the Genesis Invitational to finish T-4th, six shots back of winner Jon Rahm. Was 9th at the Masters. Shot 67-65 over the weekend at the RBC Heritage to finish T-5th, three shots back of the Matt Fitzpatrick/Jordan Spieth playoff. In the FedExCup playoffs was T-13th at the FedEx St. Jude and T-15th at the BMW Championship. He just missed getting into the Tour Championship as he finished 31st on the FedExCup standings. In the fall, he earned his first career PGA Tour title at the 2023 Fortinet Championship, defeating S.H. Kim by two shots. Victory came in his 74th career start at the age of 25 years, 9 months, 13 days. Became the fourth California native to win the event in a five-year stretch, joining Cameron Champ (2019) and Max Homa (2021, 2022). Became the 12th first-time winner of the season and first since Lee Hodges at the 3M Open.
2024 Notes: Shot a final round 63 to finish 2nd at The Sentry, a shot back of winner Chris Kirk. He was 5th at the WM Phoenix Open, T-6th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, and T-9th at the Players Championship. He was 2nd at the RBC Heritage, three shots back of the winner Scottie Scheffler. He finished T-4th at the Genesis Scottish Open, four shots back of the winner Robert MacIntyre.