Theegala found out during the tournament practice round that Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven others died in a helicopter crash not far from where Theegala lives.
Understandably devastated by the news, Theegala was able to summon the perseverance to lead his team to a victory, while closing out the individual title for himself with a 6-under 66 in the final round.
For his winning par putt, @SRTheegala donned the jersey of his childhood hero, the late Kobe Bryant.#WavesUp pic.twitter.com/w4qR0ZQtN9
— Pepperdine Men’s Golf (@PeppGolf) January 29, 2020
“He was my sports idol, as well as millions and millions of other people,” said Theegala to Brentley Romine of the Golf Channel. “To lose him a couple days ago was absolutely devastating and heartbreaking, and I was just really happy I could pay respects to him.”
For Pepperdine, it was a dominating 17-shot win over Arizona State and USC and a fast start to the spring season. For Theegala, it makes him 2-for-2 on the year, having won the prestigious Australian Master of the Amateurs earlier this month. He also won the Alister Mackenzie Invitational for the Waves in October.
It was his second individual win in the Southwestern Invitational, having first won it in 2017.