Tom Hoge and Sahith Theegala beat Ryan Palmer and Charley Hoffman by a stroke to win the QBE Shootout title
25-year-old American of Indian origin, Sahith Theegala partnered with Tom Hoge to shoot 60-60-62 (34-under par) to win the US$ 3.8mn QBE Shootout, an unofficial event open to 12 invited teams of two players, in Florida. The pair shared the top prize of US$ 475,000 for their efforts.
Theegala poured in a 15-foot birdie putt on the final hole to win while Ryan Palmer and Charley Hoffman both missed 10-foot birdie putts that would have forced a playoff.
Theegala is coming off a strong PGA Tour rookie season in which he reached the top 30 in the Fedex Cup race and the Tour Championship. During the season, he had a chance to win at least two times but just missed out on the final hole.
“It’s nice to get a taste of victory because it’s so hard out here,” Theegala said. “Although it’s an unofficial event, he said it still felt good to win.”
Harris English and Matt Kuchar, who were trying to win the QBE Shootout for the fourth time, finished two shots behind after a 62. Max Homa and Kevin Kisner had a 63 and finished fourth at 30-under 186.
There were two LPGA stars competing in the event for the first time as well. Former World No1 and Tokyo Olympic Gold Medallist Nelly Korda, who teamed up with Denny McCarthy to shoot a 62 on the final day, wound up in a tie for fifth at 27-under 189.
Long hitter and crowd favourite Lexi Thompson teamed up with Maverick McNealy to shoot 60-67-65 (24-under 192) to finish T10th.
In all the event featured 12 teams consisting of two players each and is proof that mixed events featuring lady pros alongside the men are popular with fans.
Credits:-
Photo – PGA Tour