QBE Shootout Archives - Golf Digest Middle East

A preview of 2023? Sahith Theegala sure hopes so after pulling off the QBE Shootout title with Tom Hoge

Golf Digest Middle East — Mon, 12 Dec 2022 05:09:15 +0000

By Ryan Herrington
Sahith Theegala swears he had just one goal for 2022 as he played his rookie season on the PGA Tour — keep his card. No more, no less.

The 25-year-old former national college player of the year at Pepperdine assured himself of that early in the year as he contended late into Sunday at the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February, finishing T-3. Another near miss at the Travelers Championship in June (T-2) propelled him into the FedEx Cup Playoffs, where he was one of just two rookies to advance to the Tour Championship in August.

Theegala continued his solid play when the 2022-23 season began in September, rattling off three top-six finishes this fall to put himself in 13th place on the FedEx Cup points list as the tour entered its winter break. “I’d be lying if I said I didn’t exceed my own expectations,” Theegala said.

For 2023, we’re guessing the goal with be a little more lofty, as in winning on the PGA Tour. Particularly after getting his first taste of a tour victory on Sunday at the QBE Shootout, where he partnered with Tom Hoge to claim the title in the unofficial tour stop.

The final round at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, didn’t exactly get off to the start Theegala was hoping. On the first swing of the first hole, the Chico Hills, Calif., native tweaked a muscle on his left side.

“It’s funny,” Theegala said. “I was just telling my mum at breakfast, knocked on wood, how healthy I’ve been for the last four, five years, and testament to my trainer, Iiterally have played every tournament seemingly 100 per cent.”

Tom Hoge and Sahith Theegala became the first QBE rookies to claim the title since 2011. David Cannon

So it was that Theegala leaned on his partner for much of the front nine as the pair played best ball. And Hoge obliged, making birdies on the first, fourth and eighth.

As Theegala loosened up, he got into the act, too, making a long birdie putt on the ninth hole to tie the duo of Charley Hoffman and Ryan Palmer, the overnight leaders. Over the final nine holes, Hoge and Theegala made six more birdies en route to a closing 62 to pass, hold off and then final beat Hoffman and Palmer by one stroke with a 34-under total.

“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,” said Hoge, 33, who earned his first PGA Tour title in February at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. “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.

While Hoge and Theegala were playing in the event for the first time — and became the first rookie winners since 2011 — Hoffman, 45, and Palmer, 46, were QBE veterans. This was Hoffman’s ninth start and Palmer is his sixth different partner. The duo set the 36-hole scoring record, with an opening-round 56 in scramble format and a second-round 62 in modified alternate shot. But on Sunday as they tried ot become the fifth wire-to-wire winner’s in tournament history, they did what you just can’t do in this tournament — make a bogey — that killed their momentum.

But if it looked like the veterans were fading, Palmer turned things around with a lucky (?) birdie chip in on 17. Palmer was left of the green on the par-5 hole in two then flufed a chip, the ball not reaching the putting surface and rolling back to Palmer’s feet. The do-over found the hole and tied he and Hoffman back up with Hoge and Theegala going to the 18th.

“It’s crazy the luck you need every now and then and the bounces,” Palmer said. “After that, of course I started thinking ‘OK, we’re going to have a chance to win for sure now.’ ”

All four players found the fairway on the par-4 home hole and had birdie looks inside 20 feet after their approach shots. Theegala went first and proceeded to roll his ball in the hole, putting the pressure on his opponents. Hoffman and Palmer couldn’t follow up.

“It’s pretty special. It’s nice to get a little taste of competition and taste of victory because it’s so hard out here,” said Theegala said. “So many great players. So it’s nice to get a little taste of that.”

A taste that no doubt will be leaving him wanting more.

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Report: PGA Tour, LPGA planning to turn QBE Shootout into a mixed-team event

Golf Digest Middle East — Tue, 06 Dec 2022 09:31:11 +0000

Douglas P. DeFelice

By Joel Beall
The QBE Shootout will become a mixed-team format of PGA Tour and LPGA players in 2023, according to a report from the AP’s Doug Ferguson.

The Shootout, an unofficial money event on the PGA Tour that returns this week at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Fla., currently features 12 two-player teams competing in scramble, alternate-shot and best-ball formats across 54 holes. The event has occasionally featured women in the field, including this year with Nelly Korda and Lexi Thompson. However, a uniform mixed-team format has not been seen on the PGA Tour and LPGA since 1999 with the former JC Penney Classic.

According to Ferguson, the PGA Tour had been working on converting the former World Cup of Golf into a mixed-team event, but progress was slowed when the COVID-19 pandemic arrived.

The news comes after the Australian Open successfully held its men’s and women’s competitions simultaneously this past weekend, with Adrian Meronk and Ashleigh Buhai winning the historic tournament.

Along with Korda and Thompson this week’s QBE field features Max Homa, Cameron Young, Sahith Theegala, Billy Horschel, Harris English and Kevin Kisner.

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QBE Shootout to include two LPGA players for the first time in history

Golf Digest Middle East — Fri, 04 Nov 2022 06:48:41 +0000

By Jay Coffin
The QBE Shootout announced its field for the two-person team event held December 7-11 at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Florida, and for the first time in the 22-year history of the event, the field will feature two players from the LPGA — World No. 4 Nelly Korda and World No. 7 Lexi Thompson. Thompson has competed five times in the last seven years and this will be Korda’s first appearance.

This year’s 24-player field will also feature six of the top 30 and 10 of the top 50 ranked men’s players in the world including Billy Horschel, PGA Tour Rookie of the Year Cameron Young, new father Max Homa, Sepp Straka, Kevin Kisner, Corey Conners, Tom Hoge, KH Lee, Brian Harman and Harris English.

Seven players competing for the $3.8 million purse combined for nine victories during the 2021-22 season and the fall events of 2022-23 season. Homa won three times during that stretch, including successfully defending his Fortinet Championship title in September.

Steve Stricker, Charley Hoffman, Ryan Palmer, Matt Kuchar and Jason Day are playing and all are previous veterans of the event. Newcomers include Denny McCarthy, Maverick McNealy, Keith Mitchell, Scott Stallings and Sahith Theegala.

Kevin Na and Jason Kokrak won last year’s event, but both players are LIV Golf members and not eligible to defend their titles.

The QBE Shootout will once again feature a scramble format during the first round, a modified alternate shot format during Saturday’s second round and a final-round better ball on Sunday.

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Shootout shut-out: Greg Norman says he was asked not to attend PGA Tour event he founded

Golf Digest Middle East — Wed, 21 Sep 2022 07:11:43 +0000

Greg Norman and Curtis Strange are shown during the 1994 Shark Shootout at Sherwood Country Club in California. The event eventually moved to Florida and became the QBE Shootout. Gary Newkirk

By Evin Priest
Despite creating the event more than 30 years ago, LIV Golf chief executive Greg Norman says he has been asked not to attend this year’s QBE Shootout in Naples, Florida.

The two-time major winner and head of the new series took to social media on Tuesday with a lengthy post detailing that he won’t be at the two-player team tournament, slated for December 7-11 at Tiburon Golf Club.

Norman, 67, did not specify who asked him to skip the event, formerly known as the Shark Shootout, which he created in 1989. The PGA Tour, which includes it on its schedule as an unofficial tournament, did not immediately respond to comment when contacted on Tuesday.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Greg Norman (@shark_gregnorman)

“Sadly, after 33 consecutive years of playing in and hosting every Shootout tournament — a co-sanctioned PGA Tour event — since I founded it in 1989, this year I have been asked not to attend,” Norman wrote in an Instagram post.

PGA Tour players who move to LIV Golf trigger a ban as soon as they compete in a LIV event.

“In some people’s mind this is too disruptive and evolution is perceived as a bad thing,” Norman wrote. “Change is good. Evolution and innovation of the professional golf product has been needed for decades — just ask the next generation of golf fans.”

QBE Shootout tournament director Rob Hartman told the Naples Daily News that the decision for Norman not to attend was mutual. “As we got close, ultimately the decision was made that he was going to step back and really let the focus remain on our tremendous charitable partners,” Hartman said. “When he started this event 34 years ago, it was all about charity then, and it’s all about charity now. Greg just made the decision that he didn’t want anything to distract from that.”

It comes nine weeks after Norman, who won the Open Championship in 1986 and 1993, was asked by the R&A not to attend a celebration of past champions at the 150th Open at St Andrews. The four-hole Monday event was attended by past Open winners, including Tiger Woods, Lee Trevino and Rory McIlroy. Norman called the decision “petty.”

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Watch Bubba Watson nearly make a hole-in-one on a par 4 after nailing a spectator with his drive

Golf Digest Middle East — Sun, 12 Dec 2021 03:33:24 +0000

By Ryan Herrington
When tour pros are playing in the QBE Shootout, a two-person team event, if you’re not making birdies in bunches, you’re not going to have a chance. And if you can toss in an eagle every now and then, well even better.

That’s what Bubba Watson did on Friday during the opening round when paired with Lexi Thompson at Tiburon Golf Club in Naples, Fla., although it came with an unusual assist. And not from Thompson, but rather from an unsuspecting spectator watching the action by the green.

The par-4 13th hole was listed at 350 yards from the tee, so Watson went all in and pulled driver to give the green a go. His tee shot, however, didn’t fade as much as he wanted and was heading for the gallery when this happened:

Super high drive wild bounce eagle putt.

Bubba golf. pic.twitter.com/m1IiyQ2Abv

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 10, 2021

There are fortunate bounces, and there are painful bounces, but you don’t see a lot of fortunate painful bounces. Almost fortunate enough to give Watson a hole-in-one on a par 4.

As the video showed, Watson successfully rolled in the 10-footer for eagle, and he and Thompson went on to post a 13-under 59 in Day 1’s scramble format to sit three shots off the lead of Jason Day and Marc Leishman.

As for the unfortunate fan, well he was rewarded for his painful role in the sage, as you can see here:

Tough week for Bills fans. ?

Bubba’s drive went directly off the arm of a spectator. pic.twitter.com/LpBIvNGs5W

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) December 11, 2021

That’s cool. At least Watson gave him a souvenir he would be happy to bring home rather than just the souvenir welt on that right arm.

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Bryson DeChambeau tries convincing fellow tour pro to test out his mad-scientist methods, he politely declines

Golf Digest Middle East — Sun, 09 Dec 2018 04:16:33 +0000

By Stephen Hennessey
For anybody paying attention to golf in the latter half of 2018, you’ve witnessed Bryson DeChambeau’s ascension to greatness. The 25-year-old won four events in a five-month span to rise to No. 5 in the world, all while doing things very differently than your average tour pro—using a compass for putting, developing theories on putting with the flagstick in next year … and on, and on.

One of those wacky things included DeChambeau being spotted spraying his golf balls with salt water on the range during the FedEx Cup playoffs. Turns out, there’s more to his methods of prepping golf balls for tournament play: DeChambeau actually soaks them in salt water to ensure they’re properly balanced.

It’s not too crazy of a theory—back in the day, Ben Hogan would float his golf balls in salt water to ensure they were balanced. Of course, the manufacturing process of golf balls has improved two-fold from the days of Hogan. Still, DeChambeau insists on the precision. It appears he tried to convince his playing partner at the QBE Shootout this week, Kevin Na, to get on board, according to Golf Channel reporter Chantel McCabe there in Naples, Fla., and Na had a funny rebuttal to the mad scientist:

Kevin says Bryson has been trying to get him to float his golf balls in Epsom salt.
Kevin said, “I would if I had time.”
AKA “Nah, I’m good.”

— Chantel McCabe (@ChantelMcCabeGC) December 7, 2018

Pretty hilarious. Na, the long-time veteran, has made quite the living on the PGA Tour—earning more than $28 million in on-course earnings in his 15-plus-year career. So we’re not surprised the 35-year-old doesn’t want to adapt to DeChambeau’s water-balancing method.

Though, say what you want about DeChambeau—his ways have led to his quick ascent to elite status in golf. Maybe there’s something to balancing your golf balls in salt water…

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