Sahith Theegala may oddly be a little grateful that Scottie Scheffler is so far out in front at The Tour Championship after calling a two-shot penalty on himself during his third round at East Lake.
Sahith Theegala goes into the final round of the FedEx Cup finale in third place, but some nine shots back of Scottie Scheffler after carding a five-under par 66 in Atlanta. Unfortunately for the 26-year-old, it could have easily been so much better.
Theegala called a two-shot penalty on himself on the third hole after feeling that he had potentially grazed the sand in a bunker. He was given the opportunity to review the footage before signing for his final score, but the footage could not provide a conclusive answer as to whether Theegala did indeed brush the sand on his backswing.
Unsurprisingly, the youngster initially struggled to put the situation behind him, admitting in his post-round press conference that he was very annoyed. However, he suggested that his caddie did a brilliant job of helping him move on from the potential error.
Sahith Theegala shares what his caddie said about receiving penalty at The Tour Championship
“It was tough. I got very upset. I don’t know if the cameras saw that, but I chucked my water bottle. Just in the moment. I wear my emotions on my sleeve. Tough to not get upset about that. I made a huge par on four. Thought that saved my round,” he said.
“It was a pretty wild – yeah, I’m just really happy I made that putt because if I didn’t make that putt I would have been really hot walking to hole five. Yeah, just gave a little bit more fuel to the fire, I guess. Just tried to use that positively. My caddie, Carl, kept telling me that I’ve been playing awesome. Just keep doing your thing. Two shots is a lot, but at the end of the day you’ve got a lot more golf to play. Tried to use it as a positive.”
What was even more impressive than Theegala calling a penalty on himself
Firstly, Theegala deserves enormous credit for calling the penalty on himself, particularly as he clearly was not entirely sure that he had disturbed the sand before taking his shot. Of course, golfers are normally very good at penalising themselves if the situation requires, and Theegala showed that integrity on Saturday.
But it was even more impressive how he went on to bounce back and put himself in the top three with one round to play at The Tour Championship. Theegala birdied seven of the final eight holes in his round to card that 66 which leaves him one shot clear of Xander Schauffele.
The chasing pack are all going to need Scottie Scheffler to produce the kind of final round he does not appear to have in his locker if there is going to be a dramatic finish on Sunday. But if he does slip up, Theegala will be well aware that he has the potential to put together a score which could put him right back into the mix.
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