Sahith Theegala throws golf club in anger during 'revenge week' round after being taunted

Sahith Theegala’s bid to take ‘revenge’ on the 3M Open course at Minnesota took a turn for the worse on the par-four seventh on Friday as he shanked a drive less than 150 yards. The American had got his tournament off to a superb start with a five-under round of 66 on Thursday , and was still on the same score when he opted to take an iron off the tee on the 391-yard hole.

Safe to say his choice of club backfired, as the 26-year-old totally topped his effort and watched in horror as it veered off to the right.

As Theegala flung his club behind him in frustration, one bemused commentator summarised matters aptly, asking “What in the world?”

The ball did not reach the fairway, but to the player’s credit, he somehow recovered. Theegala managed to get close to the green with his second shot and then was up-and-down for par, keeping himself at five-under.

He went on to fire a 69, leaving him at seven-under par heading into the weekend. That leaves him tied for ninth, and seven shots off overall leader Taylor Penrith from Canada.

After his efforts on Thursday, Theegala had outlined his desire to finally master the TPC Twin Cities course. The venue has not been kind to the one-time PGA Tour winner, who missed the cut in Minnesota in 2020, 2022, and 2024.

"It's kind of like a revenge week for me. I just wanted to come back and see what I can do on the golf course that's beat me up pretty bad the last three years," he told the Golf Channel. “This is probably the only week where I genuinely feel like I'm not even worried about the score

“I just want to beat the golf course. I'm not even looking at other guys on the board; I don't really care what they shoot. I just want to feel like I've tackled this course. It's a stressful golf course, and it's a good start today. But it's playing soft and getable. I think a bunch of guys are going to shoot good rounds, and hopefully, the win firms it up."

However, Theegala also appeared to make a prediction that turned out to be painfully true, adding: “But I know there's going to be a lot more stressful shots, and I'm just going to try to get through it all.

“But it's fun; it's a different challenge. And I know some guys would shy away, but I have no problem taking it on if I fail, so be it. But I really don't want to let the course get the best of me again.”

Theegala has played in all four major events this year for just the second time in his career. He made the cut at the three US-based events but endured a torrid time at Royal Troon last week, finishing 14 over par for his first two rounds.