Before Sahith Theegala professionally walked Augusta, he tasted it, rather literally. To call his act daring wouldn’t be a stretch considering the strict rules Augusta National is known for. Remember how in 2011, Rickie Fowler turned up to his pre-tournament press conference with his Puma hat turned around? Well, he was asked to turn it back by member Ron Townsend.

In 2016, Theegala was part of a practice round at Augusta with his college team, after he had recently tied for 13th at the 3M Augusta Intercollegiate (now referred to as the Augusta Haskins Invitational) with a score of 3-under 213 (69-73-71). And now, talking to Golfweek, he revealed the act he thinks might have been “illegal” during his first visit.

“I went with my college golf team. We had played in a tournament at Augusta and I think It was everyone’s first time. We were adamant we get there as soon as the gates opened and told coach we were staying until we literally got kicked out of the place. We had a stack of cups from all the sweet teas we had,” shared Theegala, going down the memory lane. 

Then reflecting on the act he pulled off, the American golfer narrated, “This was probably illegal but I remember picking a blade of grass and I ate it because I thought it would give me some magical Masters powers.”

But did the magic really work? Considering that Theegala finished with an impressive solo ninth place in his Masters debut in 2023, and followed that up with a T-45 and a T-29 in 2024 and 2025, respectively, one can probably say so.

However, Theegala hasn’t yet qualified for the Masters this season. But that doesn’t mean he cannot, since there’s a narrow window left. If he manages to win before time runs out and climbs back into the top 50 of the Official World Golf Ranking, he could have a shot at making people believe in the mysterious ways the world works.

But magic or not, Theegala has certainly learned to embrace his mistakes, thanks to the veterans he plays with in the TGL. “I do have confidence in myself, but it helps a lot that these guys also have confidence in me,” he recently said.

That confidence helped him during the TGL finals and the first round of the Houston Open. So, it can help him as he tries to make his way to the Masters.

Sahith Theegala impresses at the Houston Open

Playing at the Texas Children’s Houston Open, the Indian-American golfer looked as impressive as ever. He tied for 11th after the opening round with a score of 3-under 67. Owing to his superb showing, he is just four strokes behind the leader, Paul Waring. 

Not only is he performing well in the Houston Open, but Theegala also had a great showing at the TGL. The Los Angeles Golf Club star stood on the podium with Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood as their club claimed the win over the Jupiter Links Golf Club with a 9-2 score. 

Now, he will be eyeing the Masters. Currently ranked 80, the former World No.11 climbed from outside of the world’s top 120, thanks to three top-eight finishes and eight consecutive made cuts in 2026. And all that remains to be seen is if he can bounce back after injuries derailed his 2025 season.