SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – Sahith Theegala is ranked No. 22 in the Official World Golf Ranking but he may be more proud of his chess ranking.
“I’m at my all-time Blitz rating right now. Like, I don’t want to play, because I know I’m going to drop a bunch,” he said.
Theegala’s golf ranking may surge to a new high – his best is No. 18 – if he keeps playing like he did Thursday during the first round of the WM Phoenix Open. Theegala posted 6-under 65 at TPC Scottsdale to grab a two-stroke lead over Shane Lowry and S.H. Kim among the finishers before play was suspended due to darkness at 6:10 p.m. local time (8:10 p.m. ET).
“It’s not often where kind of every part of the game actually kind of clicks during the course of the round,” Theegala said. “It felt like through the bag I did something good with every club.”
Theegala birdied six of his first 13 holes, including a pitch-in for birdie at No. 2.
“I tried to fly it pretty close to the hole and nip it,” Theegala explained. “I didn’t hit it incredibly, so it landed on the down slope and got there. So, it was a great scenario into the wind and it’s always nice to see it drop.”
Sahith Theegala made 7 birdies in his opening round 65 today.
He now has 26 rounds with 7+ birdies or better over the last 3 PGA Tour seasons. Only 6 players have more such rounds in that span (Scheffler, Finau, Cantlay, Im, Poston, Cam Young).
— Justin Ray (@JustinRayGolf) February 9, 2024
Theegala made his lone bogey of the day at No. 5 right before play was suspended due to unplayable conditions.
“I was relieved when the horn blew, yes,” said Theegala, who enjoyed lunch with his parents and played some chess puzzles during the break and then made birdie at No. 6 when play resumed.
“Really happy with the start,” he said. “I played great and that’s all I can do, really.”
Here are four more things to know from the first round of the WM Phoenix Open.
Lowry as cold as he's been in a while
You know its officially cold when burly Irishman Shane Lowry confirms he was cold.
“Honestly it was horrible,” Lowry said. “It was as tough conditions as I can remember for a while.”
It was so cold at TPC Scottsdale that Lowry sidled over to some fans standing at the sixth hole in the rain and said, “What are you guys doing out here? Surely you can find the closest bar and do something else.”
But Lowry has had enough practice that he’s learned how to brave the elements and he did so in impressive fashion, carding 4-under 67 on Thursday.
“My hands were as cold as they have been in a while,” Lowry said. “It’s one of those where you had to try and warm up your hands somehow before every shot, because you lose the feeling in ’em. Especially when you’re trying to hit soft shots or chips and putts, your touch kind of goes a little bit.
“To be 5 under through 9 out there was like a big head start on the field.”
Lowry made his first bogey of the day at No. 16 and heard the boos, but said he was proudest of responding with birdies at 17 and 18. How did he handle the nearly 3 ½-hour suspension of play?
“You ride it out. It’s one of those where, the older you get, the more you realize don’t let it affect you, just go in, chill out,” he said. “I’m lucky, I have a couple of friends here with me this week. We went out to my car in the parking lot and we just hung there for about two hours, warmed up, because it was very cold. Yeah, you just get used to it as the years go on.”
Bombs, hole-outs and water balls — Jordan gonna Jordan
Jordan Spieth shot 3-under 68 in difficult conditions but his round had a little of everything. He made a 55-foot birdie putt at No. 11, knocked his layup shot in the water at the par-5 15th and dumped his tee shot at 16 in the sand, earning boos, to make back-to-back bogeys. Then he holed a bunker shot at 18 for birdie. Just your run-of-the-mill 2-under 34 for his first nine. Spieth is T-5 after signing for a 68.
What a difference a year makes for Yu
Kevin Yu was one of the earlier finishers, shooting 2-under 69 in the worst of the weather. But he wasn’t complaining. He was just happy to be here.
The Arizona State grad didn’t get into the field last year as a rookie on the PGA Tour and was working out at his trainer’s gym located 5 minutes from TPC Scottsdale. He was doing vertical jumps when “the tragedy happened,” as he put it.
“When I landed I heard my (left) knee pop and I just couldn’t walk, so I got an MRI and I tore my meniscus, so I had to get surgery the week after,” Yu recounted Tuesday during his pre-tournament press conference. “I always try to measure how high I can jump, and I was trying to jump as high as I can, and I guess I was trying too hard, and when I landed, the knee just happened.”
Asked how high he can jump, he responded, “Not very high. That’s the thing I’ve been working on.”
He would miss 20 weeks following surgery and rehab. But he’s off to a great start this season, with a T-3 at The American Express and a T-6 at the Farmers Insurance Open. Yu entered the week fourth in the Aon Swing 5 standings and not yet qualified for next week’s Genesis Invitational; the top five players not otherwise exempt who earn the most FedExCup points during the Sony Open in Hawaii, The American Express, Farmers Insurance Open and WM Phoenix Open will qualify for The Genesis Invitational.
Valley of the Sun it was not on Thursday
The PGA Tour remains under a black cloud of late.
On Sunday, the wind was so fierce at Pebble Beach that the final round was canceled and the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am was shortened to 54 holes.
On Thursday, remnants of the storm made its way to the desert and a band of rain that already had dumped more than an inch of rain earlier in the week led officials to institute preferred lies on Thursday. A steady rain fell sideways, leading to multiple greens that turned into giant puddles. Play was suspended for 3 hours, 30 minutes and called for the day due to darkness at 6:10 p.m. local time, marking the third straight year the opening round of the WM Phoenix Open has been suspended due to weather and/or darkness.
The entire afternoon wave has yet to complete their round. Those players will be back in position Friday at 7:30 a.m. local time (9:30 a.m. ET).
The temperature dipped into the high 40s during the afternoon, and the morning forecast is for more chilly weather, which means there could be a frost delay Friday.
The tournament has had three recent suspensions due to frost, in 2013, 2016 and 2023. In 2011, there was a Monday finish due frozen ground, which pushed the first round to Friday that year and led to a Monday finish, the last time that happened at TPC Scottsdale.
