VALLARTA, Mexico (AP) — Aldrich Potgieter had the lead going into the final round of the Mexico Open, minus the cushion he enjoyed after a sloppy finish Saturday that made him settle for a 4-under 67 and a one-shot advantage over Brian Campbell at Vidanta Vallarta.
Potgieter, the 20-year-old power player from South Africa, started with a four-shot lead and held off one challenge early from Stephan Jaeger, who closed within one shot after six holes.
The next challenge came from Campbell, who at times was 50 yards shorter off the tee than Potgieter but made up for it with his putter, including a 60-foot birdie on the par-3 ninth.
Potgieter was leading by three shots with two holes left in the third round when he badly missed his tee shot to the right on the par-3 17th, the ball settling in some bushes. He managed to punch that out into the grass, then hit a beautiful pitch to save bogey.
On the par-5 18th, Potgieter came up well short with a 7-iron for his second shot after another big drive. From a waste area, he went just over the back of the green, chipped to a front pin and had to make a 5-footer for par.
Campbell finished with a birdie for a 64 to get within one shot as both go for their first PGA Tour title and a trip to the Masters.
“He’s playing a different course than we are,” Campbell said. “It’s been honestly fun to watch. I know him from last year (on the Korn Ferry Tour), so it’s just been fun. I’m playing my game, he’s playing his game and we’ll see where that stacks up.”
Jaeger went from within one shot to falling five shots behind, only to rally with a pair of birdies on the par 5s for a 66 to finish three behind.
Potgieter was at 20-under 193.
“Besides the last two holes, it was really good,” Potgieter said. “Brian was having a great round so I tried to just stay a little bit ahead of him. All three of us played pretty decent golf. It got a little tough throughout the day with the wind a little bit, some pin placements were a little bit more tough so didn’t make as many putts today, but we’ll save it for tomorrow.”
He would love nothing more than a return to Augusta National, where he played in 2023 as the British Amateur champion. Potgieter earned his PGA Tour card through the Korn Ferry Tour, which featured one win early and a 59 in Colombia.
That firepower — particularly is length — is what has kept him in front at Vidanta Vallarta, a course with five par 5s and plenty of room off the tee. He has led the field in driving distance all three days, checking in 329.4 yards for his average Saturday.
He played in the last group with Campbell and Jaeger — the same trio for the final round — and Campbell wasn’t the least bit bothered by the difference in length. He plotted his way to a bogey-free round that gives him a shot at his first PGA Tour win.
Jaeger, who held off Scottie Scheffler to win the Houston Open last year, drove into the water on the reachable par-4 seventh hole after getting within one shot of Potgieter. He made bogey, a two-shot swing when the South African made birdie, and Jaeger did well to finish within three shots at the end of the round.
“Obviously, the bogey on 7 kind of hurt. That’s kind of one that hit a good drive, it’s pretty much automatic birdie so kind of a two shot swing there,” Jaeger said. “Other than that, I gave myself some nice looks, hit a bunch of lips, but I’m in a great spot tomorrow.”
Alex Smalley had a 64 and was five shots behind, with Aaron Rai (68) and Ben Griffin (67) another shot back.
Justin Hastings of the Cayman Islands, the San Diego State senior who won the Latin American Amateur last month to earn a trip to the Masters, had a 65 and was tied for ninth with Patrick Rodgers and Nicolai Hojgaard, who twice chipped in for eagle on the back nine.
“Now that I made the cut, which I think was a big goal this week, it took a lot of stress off and I felt like I played a lot more free today,” Hastings said. “Yeah, I think it showed on the scorecard. It was a lot less stressful.”
The stakes Sunday are more than just a trip to the Masters. The winner will gets in The Players Championship and the PGA Championship, along with five of the remaining $20 million signature events. Jaeger is already in from his top-50 finish in the FedEx Cup last year.
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