Brian Campbell could see his chance at winning the Mexico Open at VidantaWorld sailing away as his tee shot on the second extra hole went screaming into a thicket of trees and heading toward out of bounds.
Then a twist of fortune almost instantly redefined Campbell’s career. The ball popped back out into play and moments later he won his first PGA Tour event with a birdie on the par-5 18th hole at Vidanta Vallarta to beat 20-year-old budding star Aldrich Potgieter of South Africa.
“That bounce, I’ll take it,” the 31-year-old Campbell said.
On a Sunday when a handful of players had chances to win the event, Campbell and Potgieter finished at 20-under-par 264 to force a playoff that was a study in contrasts.
Campbell is a classic grinder, having had his PGA Tour card in 2016-17 only to lose it and not regain his privileges until this year. He’s not particularly long and has the scar tissue accumulated by years of near misses, having made 187 winless professional starts.
Potgieter, on the other hand, is the youngest player on the tour and the longest, leading the PGA Tour in driving distance at 328.7 yards. A former British Amateur champion, Potgieter bypassed college, turned pro at 18 and last year became the youngest winner in Korn Ferry Tour history.
The third-round leader, Potgieter squandered several shots on Sunday with sloppy play around the greens and failed to birdie the par-5 18th in two tries in the playoff despite having irons into the green on both.
“Grit, that’s the only word I can think of right now. I’m freaking out on the inside right now.”
Brian Campbell
Campbell stuck to his strengths and, with the help of an enormous break in the playoff, redirected his career path.
“Grit, that’s the only word I can think of right now,” Campbell said when asked how he won. “I’m freaking out on the inside right now. To be in this position is so unreal.”
Potgieter struck a philosophical tone after his playoff loss.
“Hopefully, my time will come soon,” he said. “If you had told me I’d get second place before the week started, I’d have taken it.”
A solo third-place finish was the best week of Isaiah Salinda’s career. Making just his 15th tour start, the 2019 Walker Cup team member shot 65 on Sunday and was tied for the lead when he finished his round. He finished one stroke out of the playoff.
Salinda played college golf at Stanford with Maverick McNealy and Brandon Wu but he entered the Mexico Open ranked 167th in strokes gained putting and 169th in strokes gained approach.
“A little disappointed, came up just short,” Salinda said. “I’m proud of the round I played, having a chance to win. All I wanted to do is give myself a chance and I came up one short. That’s golf. I can’t be too upset.”
Ron Green Jr.