"I knew Collin Morikawa was a baller"- Sahith Theegala on playing with a 'silent killer'
US golfers Sahith Theegala and Collin Morikawa were paired together for the fourball event in the first round of the ongoing Presidents Cup. The duo triumphed over Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee of the International Team.
Recently, Sahith Theegala along with his teammates Keegan Bradley, Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele sat down for an interview. Theegala was asked about his experience of his first match at the Presidents Cup and whether anything caught him by surprise. He heaped praise on his partner Collin Morikawa. He said said, via ASAP Sports:
"I don't think anything caught me by surprise. I was very nervous, and I expected to be very nervous, but I was -- I knew Collin was a baller, but just his presence and his calming presence and how he goes about his process, he's just a silent killer, man."
The Sahith Theegala and Collin Morikawa v/s Adam Scott and Min Woo Lee fixture was a "super intense" one. There were several lead changes throughout the game. Finally the US pair was able to secure the lead on the 14th hole after Morikawa hit a birdie. The duo managed to maintain the narrow lead till the end and won 1-up.
Theegala said:
"That kind of fired me up and settled me down, too, knowing that all these guys on this team are beasts, and just to be up close and personal with Collin, I've known him forever, we've never been able to play a team match together, it was awesome. It was super intense. I knew it would be. Just fought until the end."
The 26-year-old added:
"Match play is a funny, funny thing. There's always some Mongolians and things go the ways that you don't think it would go. But yeah, it was really intense. To finish how we finished was awesome, to get a point."
The 2024 Presidents Cup is Sahith Theegala's debut in the biennial tournament. He qualified automatically into the 12-man team.
With whom did Sahith Theegala pair up for the Presidents Cup round 2?
After a successful fourball campaign on Thursday, Sahith Theegala was again paired with Collin Morikawa for the foursomes event in round two of the Presidents Cup. However, the duo was not able to replicate its magic from the previous day and lost to Adam Scott and Taylor Pendrith.
The contest started with both teams tied for the first three holes. The International Team went 1-up after an excellent birdie. Scott extended the lead after sinking a 39-foot putt. The US Team won the 7th hole, the only hole it won throughout, after its opponents conceded. Adam Scott and Taylor Pendrith continued winning holes on the back nine, including the 10th, 11th and 12th. Pendrith nailed an 11-foot putt on the 12th hole.
This was Adam Scott's 22nd point overall in the Presidents Cup which is the most by an International player in the history of the tournament. The 44-year-old is making his 11th appearance at the Presidents Cup. While it was Taylor Pendrith's second appearance, it was the first time these two golfers were paired together.
The match concluded on the 14th hole as Scott and Pendrith earned a comfortable win of 5-4 over Sahith Theegala and Collin Morikawa.