Sahith Theegala, ranked 11th in the world golf rankings, returned to the TPC Twin Cities for the fourth time in the six-year history of the 3M Open, seeking more than just FedEx Cup Playoff points.
He is looking to return to a watery and often windy journey that has so vexed him.
Theegala has competed in three of the first five 3M Opens, missing the cut each time.
On Thursday, the tournament’s top-ranked player, ranked 11th, shot a first-round 66, or 5 under par, which puts him three shots behind leader Jacob Bridgeman and two shots behind second-place Mackenzie Hughes.
Take that, TPC.
“It’s kind of like a revenge week for me,” Theegala said. “I just wanted to come back and see what I can do on the golf course that beat me up big time the last three times.”
Former Clemson, Korn Ferry Tour and PGA Tour player Bridgeman shot a career-low 8-under and came within a whisker of making the cut at the Barracuda Championship near Lake Tahoe on Friday. He called it one of the toughest days he’s ever had.
“Thursday I played really well and Friday I had nothing. It was one of the worst rounds I’ve played and I was struggling that night,” said Bridgeman, who credits his parents, girlfriend and college coach with the conversations that pulled him out of his “blues.”
Former Stanford golfer Patrick Rodgers, French-American golfer Martin Trainer and Andrew Novak are tied for third place. Seven other golfers are tied with Theegala for sixth place.
Theegala’s first 3M Open was his third professional tournament, in 2020.
The year before, 3M Open tournament director Hollis Cavner had offered sponsor exemptions into the inaugural 3M Open to college stars Viktor Hovland, Collin Morikawa and Matthew Wolff. He did so with the intention of building relationships while all three were still young.
He did the same with his events company Pro Links Sports, which runs three college tournaments, and reached out to Theegala, a Southern California native, just as he announced he would turn pro after an All-America career at Pepperdine.
“They gave me a good start right out of college,” Theegala said. “I don’t feel like I owe them anything, but they’ve been really good to me and it’s a really, really well-organized event. It’s one of the best-organized events, and they treat you well.”
A PGA Tour winner last fall, Theegala finished 12th at this year’s PGA Championship and ninth at last year’s Masters. He has six top-10 finishes this season, including a ninth-place finish at The Players Championship, and is seventh in the FedEx Cup points race.
Theegala’s first round was bogey-free and put him in a tie with 2019 US Open champion Gary Woodland, 2009 British Open winner Stewart Cink, Kevin Streelman, Taylor Pendrith and Michael Thorbjornsen.
“This is probably the only week where I really feel like I don’t even care about the score,” Theegala said. “I just want to beat the golf course. I don’t even look at the other guys or the scoreboard. I don’t care what they shoot. I just want to feel like I took on this course.”
He wasn’t planning on playing in last year’s 3M Open, but he missed the cut in Scotland, so he played to prepare for the playoffs. He shot 72-72 on a course where opponents play very low. He committed early this year to building momentum for the playoffs.
“Everything has worked out for me to be here,” Theegala said.
He has improved his traditionally suspect driver stroke a lot this year. That’s helpful on a course with water, wind and rough everywhere. He also changed his putter starting in Thursday’s first round.
“I’m not afraid to say that I don’t think the course really suited my game until this year,” Theegala said. “I was really looking forward to coming back because that’s where my game has improved the most. I’ve really played a great round all year and I was looking forward to playing on the short grass. So, yeah, it’s like a revenge week for me.”