Mackenzie Hughes Did Two Things In One Shot At Mexico Open That I've Never Seen A Pro Golfer Do

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PGA Tour player Mackenzie Hughes played in a featured group on Thursday afternoon at the Mexico Open with the two favorites to win the event – Tony Finau and Nicolai Hojgaard. 

Hughes had a rough day. He played mostly even par until a disastrous four-putt double-bogey on his 12th hole of the day (hole #3). Then, he made a bogey on his very next hole after missing another short putt. In the span of two holes, Hughes missed three putts inside six feet. 

That dropped him to three-over on the day and really hurt his chances to compete for victory at the Mexico Open – or perhaps even make the cut. 

PGA Tour golfer Mackenzie Hughes lines up a putt on the 13th green during the first round of the Mexico Open.

PGA Tour golfer Mackenzie Hughes lines up a putt on the 13th green during the first round of the Mexico Open.

(Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images)

After a par on his ensuing hole, Hughes stepped up to a par-5 needing to make something happen. After hitting a beautiful drive right into the center of the fairway, Hughes attempted to reach the green in two shots. 

However, he hooked his second shot hard to the left. The ball ended up on the cart path before rolling onto a storm drain. 

Because his ball landed on a drain, Hughes was allowed to take free relief and move his ball back onto the grass. Except, he decided not to do that. In addition, for some bizarre reason, he also elected to take off his shoes. 

I messaged OutKick golf expert Mark Harris and asked him his thoughts. 

"I've never seen anyone take off their shoes to hit a ball off the cart path," he responded. 

I haven't either. Nor have I ever seen anyone hit a shot off a drain. 

But, that's what Hughes did. 

Unfortunately, the shot didn't work out that well. He missed the green and ended up making par. Not a terrible result and could have been worse, but he really needed a birdie. 

He hit his next tee shot into the water as his terrible back-9 continued. Although, he made a great recovery shot to save his par. 

In some weird twist of fate, Hughes managed to find ANOTHER storm drain on his final hole of the day. This time, though, he elected to take the relief. 

He wound up making a triple-bogey to finish his day with a 77, the second-worst performance from anyone in the early wave of players. 

But, at least he's now one of the few players who can say he hit a ball off a storm drain while wearing only socks on his feet during a competitive round of golf. 

It's the small victories in life. 

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Dan began his sports media career at ESPN, where he survived for nearly a decade. Once the Stockholm Syndrome cleared, he made his way to Outkick. He is secure enough in his masculinity to admit he is a cat-enthusiast with three cats, one of which is named “Brady” because his wife wishes she were married to Tom instead of him.