PHOTO: Theegala (center) accepting the Ben Hogan Award from (left) Eddie Merrins, PGA, (right) Sal Cimbolo, of The Friends of Golf.

NEXT ON THE TEE…… BY: STEPHEN MONDAY, SCPGA TOURNAMENT MANAGER

Southern California has had it’s fair share of successful collegiate and PGA TOUR Professionals born within the region. There are Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Charley Hoffman to name a few, but now there is a new name to be on the lookout for: Sahith Theegala. Theegala, born and raised in Chino Hills, spent his Junior Tour days playing (and winning) in the various junior programs of the Southern California PGA. The competitive fields and challenging golf courses that the SCPGA Junior programs provided are things that he credits to his past and current success on the golf course. Playing against players like Collin Morikawa and Matthew Wolff (both who won on the 16

PGA Tour in 2019) during his junior golf days helped to springboard him to his many accomplishments. During his junior golf and high school days, Theegala began working with PGA Professional, Rick Hunter (El Prado Golf Course), who helped to hone his

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phenomenal talents. Being what Theegala describes himself as a “super feel player,” he credits Hunter as someone who understood his swing and didn’t try to change it too much. From a young age, and even now, Hunter saw that massive potential that Theegala possessed and recently