Sahith Theegala - Tom Hoge win PGA’s 2022 QBE Shootout
Sahith Theegala and Tom Hoge clinched the 2022 QBE Shootout title on Sunday. The duo closed with a 10-under 62 in four-ball after Theegala made a 15-foot birdie final hole putt. The American duo became the first rookie pairing to win the QBE Shootout title in 11 years.
The 2022 QBE Shootout featured a mixed field for the first time and saw some nail-baiting twists. However, it was Sahith Theegala’s grind on the final day that came out on top. The Theegala-Hoge team made the best of the final hole. The duo outscored Ryan Palmer and Charley Hoffman to take the win at the Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida.
The duo won the winner’s share of $950,000 from the event, which the players will split equally.
@SRTheegala
1-for-1 @QBEShootout.
@HogeGolf 🏆 @SRTheegala https://t.co/mPB7NLcGHf
Sahith Theegala and Tom Hoge win 2022 QBE Shootout
It is pertinent to note that Sahith Theegala was hurt on the opening tee shot. The golfer pulled an oblique and was in visible discomfort throughout the final round. However, coming off a strong PGA Tour rookie season, he pushed through the pain.
Theegala’s heroics didn’t go to waste as he marched on to win the title with Tom Hoge. The duo took the win at Tiburon Golf Club, coming from two down entering the final round. They capitalized on tournament leaders Ryan Palmer and Charley Hoffman’s misses on the final day.
Following the win, Theegala came out to laud his team. The golfer said that they’d been playing well throughout the week and have created good chances for themselves.
He said, as quoted by Golf Week:
“It's nice to get a taste of victory because it's so hard out here… We’ve been playing well all week. Like we said at the start of the round, we just need two chances and we gave ourselves two really good changes on 18. Yeah, it was kind of unspoken I think that like let’s go and get this last hole.”
At the same time, Hoge dubbed it an “interesting day” and said neither of them was playing well. He went on to state that the “ham and egg worked well” for his team and they managed to make the right putts that counted.
He said:
“It was an interesting day because I don’t think either one of us played our best for 18 holes, but we kind of timed it right. I got off to some good starts to both nines and then Sahith kind of brought me home. You know, kind of the ham and egg worked really well for us and holed the timely putts when we needed to, for sure.”
A birdie at the last seals the deal 🏆
@SRTheegala and @HogeGolf earn the win @QBEShootout. https://t.co/p6J2fx3TJG
Second-place winner Charley Hoffman also came forward to congratulate the QBE Shootout champions. Speaking to the media after Theegala and Hoge’s win, Hoffman said:
“Give credit to them, they went out and played some good golf today. They made a lot of putts and hit a lot of good shots.”
It is pertinent to note that Theegala and Hoge became the only second rookie team ever to win the QBE Shootout. The duo follows Keegan Bradley and Brendan Steele, who won the title in 2011. It is pertinent to note that Theegala is yet to land his maiden win on the PGA Tour, while Hoge won the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am last year.