Pos. Player Scores Current
Totalplay Cup Rank
1 José de Jesús Rodríguez (Mexico) 66-67-72-64—269 (-15) 14
2 Austin Hitt (U.S.) 69-71-66-66—272 (-12) 13
T3 Myles Creighton (Canada) 68-67-69-69—273 (-11) 28
T3 Mitchell Meissner (U.S.) 70-66-67-70—273 (-11) 2
T3 Kevin Velo (U.S.) 70-64-69-70—273 (-11) 3


Rodríguez comes from behind to win in Guadalajara
GUADALAJARA, Mexico—Given his solid track record at Atlas Country Club and his
stature as a Korn Ferry Tour player who spent a full season on the PGA TOUR in
2018-19, José de Jesús Rodríguez of Mexico turned out to be unstoppable Sunday at
the Jalisco Open Guadalajara. The 41-year old shot a 6-under 30 on the back nine to
run away from the pack and set himself apart as the only player with five career PGA
TOUR Latinoamérica victories.
At 15-under 269 for the week, Rodríguez finished three strokes clear of U.S. player
Austin Hitt, who fired a 66 for the second consecutive day to finish solo second.
Mitchell Meissner and Kevin Velo, the players who entered the day in a tie for the
lead, shot 70 to join Myles Creighton of Canada in a three-way tie for third, at 11-
under.
Finishing in the top three for the third consecutive tournament, Meissner
strengthened his position as Totalplay Cup No. 2, moving only 19 points behind
overall leader Jorge Fernández Valdés of Argentina, who tied for 16th at Atlas
Country Club.
With 12 players within three shots of the lead at the start of a day that provided
great scoring conditions, there were several players in the hunt for the ninth title of
the 2021-22 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica season.
Trailing by two through 54 holes, Rodríguez got off to a slow start, bogeying two of
the first four holes to stand further behind. After birdies on 6 and 8 to get to 1-under
for the day, Rodríguez picked up his pace with a decisive eagle on the 10th, a 450-
yard par-5, a hole he played in a cumulative 5-under for the week.


“The eagle on 10 was the key moment of the round. I hit driver off the tee, and then
I picked an 8-iron from 195 yards. I hit it pin high and made the 10-footer. I made the
most of my opportunity there, and the eagle raised my confidence. After that, I just
wanted more, and I tried my best to go as low as I could,” said Rodríguez, who
birdied 11 and 13 to claim a lead that he would not surrender.
He extended his advantage with another birdie at the par-5 15th and then sealed the
deal by sinking an 18-footer for his last birdie of the day, at the par-3 17th.
“I have been striking the ball really well lately, and this win makes me feel great
about my return to the Korn Ferry Tour, where I’m hoping to work my way back to
the PGA TOUR,” said the man who holds the 32nd spot on the 2022 Korn Ferry Tour
Points List. While making the cut in eight of 11 starts, Rodríguez has recorded two
top-10 finishes at the next level this year, including a tie for third at the Chitimacha
Louisiana Open in March.


With this victory, Rodríguez separated himself from a group of four players who had
claimed four career wins on PGA TOUR Latinoamérica. Those at four victories are his
countryman Rodolfo Cazaubón, American Michael Buttacavoli and the Argentine duo
of Julián Etulain and Fernández Valdés.
The Jalisco Open Guadalajara showed up on his radar when he received an
appointment to renew his U.S. visa here last Wednesday. “I had played five weeks in
a row, and I usually don’t play more than four in succession. Anyway, I was going to
be here in Guadalajara, so I signed up for this one, and I’m grateful to God that I was
able to win it,” he said about the reason behind his first PGA TOUR Latinoamérica
event since claiming 2017 Player of the Year honors.
Did you know José de Jesús Rodríguez has now recorded three professional wins at
Atlas Country Club? He won a Mexican Tour event in consecutive years, beginning in

  1. His first win here included a course-record-setting 61 during the second round
    of the 54-hole event. Back in 2013, the first time PGA TOUR Latinoamérica played at
    this venue, Rodríguez finished solo second, two shots behind tournament winner
    Manuel Villegas of Colombia.
    Key Information
    With five titles, José de Jesús Rodríguez is now the all-time leader in career PGA
    TOUR Latinoamérica wins. The following is a look at his five wins on Tour:
  2. 2013 Roberto De Vicenzo Invitational Copa NEC: Defeated Timothy O’Neal of the U.S and
    Sebastián Saavedra of Argentina with a birdie on the second hole of a playoff at Club de Golf
    del Uruguay in Montevideo. Shot 71-66-66-68 to finish regulation tied for first, at 271 (-17).
  3. 2013 Arturo Calle Colombian Classic: Defeated Manuel Villegas of Colombia with a par on
    the second playoff hole at the 233-yard par-3 ninth hole at San Andrés Golf Club in Bogota.
    Shot 67-73-65-65 to finish regulation tied for first, at 270 (-14).
  4. 2017 Avianca Colombia Open: Posted rounds of 70-68-67-64 to finish at 269 (-15). Won by
    two shots over Nicolás Echavarría at the Country Club of Guaymaral (No. 1 Course) in Bogota.
  5. 2017 Paraguay Open Copa NEC: Shot 68-69-67-73 to finish at 277 (-11) at the Yacht & Golf
    Club Paraguayo in Asuncion. Won by four shots over Englishman Kelvin Day.
  6. 2022 Jalisco Open Guadalajara: Shot 66-67-72-64 to finish at 15-under 269 at Atlas
    Country Club in Guadalajara, Mexico. Won by three shots over American Austin Hitt
    In a tie for 33rd halfway through the tournament, Austin Hitt of Longwood, Florida,
    put together back-to-back 66s this weekend to run away with solo-second honors.
    The runner-up at the PGA TOUR Latinoamérica Q-School at Mission Inn Resort last
    November, Hitt has now recorded three top-10s this season—a tie for fifth at the
    Termas de Rio Hondo Invitational, a tie for ninth at the JHSF Brazil Open and this
    career-best second-place finish in Guadalajara. “Today I started out with a threeputt, which is not good. I kept myself going with solid ball-striking as I have all week,
    and I finally got some putts to drop,” said the 24-year old University of North
    Carolina alum about his Sunday performance.
    Moving from 30th to 13th in the Totalplay Cup standings with only three
    tournaments left to play this season, Austin Hitt appears ready to make a run at the
    top five. “I was going to play this tournament and see if I was going to go to Canada
    and start fresh or I keep going on this Tour, but after this one, I think I’m going to
    stay,” he said regarding his plans to play PGA TOUR Canada , a Tour where he has
    secured full status for the season that starts this coming week in Victoria, British
    Columbia.
    Although a victory remains elusive, Mitchell Meissner is by far the hottest player on
    PGA TOUR Latinoamérica. The 25-year old Rice University alum might well win the
    Totalplay Cup without a victory. His tie-for-third finish at Atlas Country Club earned
    him 145 Totalplay Cup points and moved him within just 19 points of Totalplay Cup
    leader Jorge Fernández Valdés, who earned 47 points in a tie for 16th. The following
    are the players inside the Totalplay Cup top-10 through the Jalisco Open
    Guadalajara:
    Totalplay Cup Points List
    (Through Jalisco Open GDL)
    Points
    List Pos.
    Player Total Points Points Behind
    1 Jorge Fernández Valdés (Argentina) 1,138 —
    2 Mitchell Meissner (U.S.) 1,119 19
    3 Kevin Velo (U.S.) 851 287
    4 Alan Wagner (Argentina) 851 287
    5 Cristóbal Del Solar (Chile) 814 324
    6 José Toledo (Guatemala) 808 330
    7 Alejandro Tosti (Argentina) 795 343
    8 Manav Shah (U.S.) 620 518
    9 Jeremy Gandon (France) 592 546
    9 Matt Ryan (U.S.) 585 553
    There were 38 Mexicans playing this week, six of them amateurs. The following are
    the final scores and positions for the 12 who made it into the weekend:
    Pos. Player Score
    1 José de Jesús Rodríguez 269 (15-under)
    T6 Raúl Pereda 274 (10-under)
    T13 Rodolfo Cazaubón 276 (8-under)
    T16 Aarón Terrazas 277 (7-under)
    T24 Emilio González 279 (5-under)
    T24 Armando Favela 279 (5-under)
    T27 Eduardo Carrete 280 (4-under)
    T35 Luis Gerardo Garza 282 (2-under)
    T48 Roberto Rodríguez Cacho 285 (1-over)
    T48 Juan Diego Fernández 285 (1-over)
    T52 David Faraudo 287 (3-over)
    T52 Sebastián Vázquez 287 (3-over)
    Final-Round Weather: Partly cloudy. High of 93. Wind SW at 3-13 mph.

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