Just when it appeared that the PGA Tour may be about to get a player of an eighth different nationality winning its eighth event of the season, it was American Brian Campbell who sealed victory on the second playoff hole to win the Mexico Open at VidantaWorld on Sunday.
Aldrich Potgieter had been the star of the show for much of the week at the Mexico Open at VidantaWorld. The South African had taken charge of the tournament with a stunning 61 on Friday in Vallarta.
Unfortunately, the pressure seemed to get to Potgieter on Sunday. He made three bogeys on the front nine of the final round to open the door for the likes of Aaron Rai and Brian Campbell to make a charge. Ultimately, it was the latter who made it into a playoff.
The pair would make par on the 18th the first time around, before Campbell enjoyed an incredible slice of luck when they returned to the tee.
Brian Campbell full of praise for Aldrich Potgieter after the Mexico Open
The 31-year-old seemed set to send his drive out of bounds, with the ball cutting sharply right. However, his ball was spat back out onto the 18th hole from the trees.
Campbell still had well over 300 yards into the hole, but a fine approach for his third set up the birdie which got him across the line for his first ever PGA Tour win.
And afterwards, he shared what he told Potgieter as he tried to console the youngster.
“‘Aldrich, keep doing what you’re doing, obviously it’s working’. I said it for a long time, he’s a pretty insane talent. If he just keeps doing what he’s doing, he’s going to be just fine. We saw him on the Korn Ferry win the very first tournament of the year and yeah, man, you know, future’s bright for him, for sure,” he said.
A game-changing moment for Campbell on the PGA Tour
It could be a huge moment in Campbell’s career, having been promoted from the Korn Ferry Tour just last year. He will now feature at the Masters and the PGA Championship, as well as the Players Championship and five signature events on the PGA Tour this season.
And Campbell admitted that he was blown away by the love he had received from the crowd throughout the week.
“Amazing. The fans here are unlike anywhere else. Actually it started in Mexico for me back nine years ago I played in a Web.com event in Leon and I had conditional status and I was playing the first round and there was a guy at 9 under par. I was just chasing him. Finished the round only to find out that that was a mistake and I was leading the tournament, so I was chasing someone that wasn’t there. That catapulted my career a lot, it got me starts from then on. I have a special place in my heart with Mexico. And the fans here, the amount of kids out here, seeing them all excited, I love to see that stuff. I hope to see them out here playing the Mexico Open in the next couple years, too,” he said.
Potgieter meanwhile, has plenty to be positive about. Not only is one of the longest hitters on tour, but he also gained more than nine shots on the greens throughout the week, according to the PGA Tour website.
That first PGA Tour win should not be too far away, despite the disappointment on Sunday.
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