PGA TOUR Latinoamérica season culminates in Mexico
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TULUM, Mexico—Having completed 11 regular season tournaments in seven countries, the PGA TOUR Latinoamérica’s race for the Totalplay Cup comes to an end this week in Mexico. With the Bupa Tour Championship the final event, the season-long competition that provides access to the Korn Ferry Tour is as tight as it has ever been.
Although there are 16 players in the limited, 54-player field who can mathematically win the Totalplay Cup, only those ranked first through sixth, control their destiny. A win would lock up the season’s top honors for Myles Creighton, Walker Lee, Chandler Blanchet, Charlie Hillier, Austin Hitt, or Conner Godsey regardless of whatever any of their opponents do.
The season-ending event spices things up by offering enhanced Totalplay Cup points, with 600 points going to the winner, 100 more than each of the 11 regular season tournaments. Set at U.S. $200,000 for the second consecutive year, the purse money this week is also the largest of the season. The tournament begins Thursday at 7:30 a.m. local time at PGA Riviera Maya.
The following are the projected point totals for the leading six in case of a win or a runner-up finish:
| Pos. | Player | Current Point Total | Projected Points with a win | Projected Points as runner-up |
| 1 | Myles Creighton (Canada) | 1,094 | 1,694 | 1,424 |
| 2 | Walker Lee (U.S.) | 945 | 1,545 | 1,275 |
| 3 | Chandler Blanchet (U.S.) | 939 | 1,539 | 1,269 |
| 4 | Charlie Hillier (New Zealand) | 878 | 1,478 | 1,208 |
| 5 | Austin Hitt (U.S.) | 873 | 1,473 | 1,203 |
| 6 | Conner Godsey (U.S.) | 865 | 1,465 | 1,195 |
| 7 | Linus Lilliedahl (Sweden) | 804 | 1,404 | 1,734 |
Coming off three consecutive top-10 finishes—a tie for seventh, a win and a tie for fourth—Creighton is carrying great momentum as he holds a 149-point Totalplay Cup lead. He clearly possesses the advantage among the 16 who are trying to win the Totalplay Cup, the Player of the Year title, a bonus of U.S. $20,000 and, perhaps, most importantly the luxury to play in every open 2024 Korn Ferry Tour tournament.
“If I play well, in the position I'm in, and win, then no one can pass me. I just have to play well, and if someone plays better, then, they play better,” said the 27-year-old from Digby, Nova Scotia, Canada.
Being familiar with the course at PGA Riviera Maya plays in his favor as well. Creighton played here the past two seasons, tying for 12th in 2021 and 10th in 2022. Last year, he was solo second through 54 holes but carded a final-round 76 and watched Jesús Montenegro take the title while playing by his side in the last group.
“You have to be so patient on this course. It's a lot of 3-irons off the tee, and then you have a long way in. So, par is your friend on this golf course all week. You're playing four rounds no matter what, so if you get off to a tough start, you have lots of time to get it back,” added Creighton of the no-cut, 72-hole event.
Playing at 7,272 yards, the tight, par-72 that nestles through the Mayan jungle and features several natural lakes and cenotes, PGA Riviera Maya has been an extraordinary test for PGA TOUR Latinoamérica players over the past two years.
“It’s a very demanding course,” says Mexico’s Raúl Pereda, who tied for sixth in 2021 and for 15th last year. “You have to be very assertive from the tee. The weather is a factor, as well. It’s very hot and very windy.”
Currently, Pereda is holding down the 25th Totalplay Cup position, with his countryman Alvaro Ortiz only 27 points behind. Pereda is on the bubble for an exemption into second stage of the 2023 PGA TOUR Q-School presented by Korn Ferry, a privilege players ranked sixth through 25th will lock up at the conclusion of this event.
With last Sunday’s winner José de Jesús Rodríguez just ahead of them, Pereda and Ortiz are also in the hunt for two additional bonuses of U.S. $5,000 available by Bupa Mexico to each of the two best-ranked Mexican players at the conclusion of the Totalplay Cup season.
The following are the seven Mexican players who finished the regular season inside the Totalplay Cup top 60. Rodríguez is not playing this week, with the other six all still in contention for the bonuses:
Totalplay Cup Leading Mexicans
| Position | Player | Total Points | Points Behind |
| 18 | José de Jesús Rodríguez* | 500 | -- |
| 25 | Raúl Pereda | 428 | 72 |
| 26 | Álvaro Ortiz | 401 | 99 |
| 32 | Luis Gerardo Garza | 314 | 186 |
| 38 | Jorge Villar | 282 | 218 |
| 39 | Rodolfo Cazaubón | 282 | 218 |
| 44 | Isidro Benítez | 258 | 242 |
* Not playing this week
The Bupa Tour Championship field is at 54 players. The Tour limited the field to those top-60 Totalplay Cup Points List earners through the Jalisco Open Guadalajara. Cristóbal Del Solar (ranked ninth), José de Jesús Rodríguez (tied for 18th), Zack Fischer (tied for 18th), Tim Widing (50th), David Pastore (52nd) and Alejandro Tosti (57th) qualified for this event but will not be playing. There are no alternates or replacements allowed.
Key Information
Who can win the Totalplay Cup? Going all the way down to Totalplay Cup No. 17 Stuart Macdonald, who has earned 506 points, there are 16 players who can mathematically win the cup.
Who can break inside the top five? Anyone inside the top 39 can catch Austin Hitt, the fifth-ranked player, with 873 points. Mexico’s Mexico’s Jorge Villar and Rodolfo Cazaubón share the 39th position.
Who can break inside the top-25? No. 25 Raúl Pereda (428 points) leads by 27 points over No. 26 Alvaro Ortiz. All the players outside the top 25 can still move in.
Totalplay Cup Points List
(Through 11 of 12 official events)
| Pos. | Player | Total Points | Points Behind |
| 1 | Myles Creighton (Canada) | 1,094 | -- |
| 2 | Walker Lee (U.S.) | 945 | 149 |
| 3 | Chandler Blanchet (U.S.) | 939 | 155 |
| 4 | Charlie Hillier (New Zealand) | 878 | 216 |
| 5 | Austin Hitt (U.S.) | 873 | 221 |
| 6 | Conner Godsey (U.S.) | 865 | 229 |
| 7 | Linus Lilliedahl (Sweden) | 804 | 290 |
| 8 | Toni Hakula (Finland) | 757 | 337 |
| 9 | Cristóbal Del Solar (Chile)* | 711 | 383 |
| 10 | Marcos Montenegro (Argentina) | 677 | 417 |
*Korn Ferry Tour player, not playing this week
The top-10 table shows number of points awarded at the season-ending Bupa Tour Championship in comparison to the regular season events.
Bupa Tour Championship Points Distribution
| Regular Season Events | Bupa Tour Championship | |
| Position | ||
| 1 | 500 | 600 |
| 2 | 300 | 330 |
| 3 | 190 | 210 |
| 4 | 135 | 150 |
| 5 | 110 | 120 |
| 6 | 100 | 110 |
| 7 | 90 | 100 |
| 8 | 85 | 94 |
| 9 | 80 | 88 |
| 10 | 75 | 82 |
The following is a look at the different performance rewards available for the players who finish the season inside the Totalplay Cup top 60:
For the second consecutive season, the Tour will be enhancing the race for the Totalplay Cup, providing a U.S. $100,000 bonus pool for the top-10 finishers in the standings at the end of the 2022-23 season. The winner of the Totalplay Cup will receive $20,000 in addition to his 2024 Korn Ferry Tour membership. The following is the bonus pool breakdown:
Totalplay Cup Bonus Breakdown
| Totalplay Cup Position | Bonus Amount |
| First | $20,000 |
| Second | $15,000 |
| Third | $12,000 |
| Fourth | $11,000 |
| Fifth | $9,500 |
| Sixth | $7,500 |
| Seventh | $7,000 |
| Eighth | $6,500 |
| Ninth | $6,000 |
| Tenth | $5,500 |
Tournament Fast Facts
Official Name: Bupa Tour Championship
Hashtag: #BupaTourChampionship
Dates: June 29-July 2, 2023
Host venue: PGA Riviera Maya, Par-72 (36-36) 7,272 yards
Field: 54 players from 13 countries
Countries and territories represented in the field: Argentina (10 players), Brazil (2), Canada (4), Chile (2), England (1), Finland (1), France (1), Mexico (6), New Zealand (2), Peru (1), Scotland (1), Sweden (1) and the United States (22).
Purse: U.S. $200,000 – Winner’s share U.S. $36,000
Totalplay Cup points: Awarded to all the players, with600 going to the winner
Cut: This is a no-cut 72-hole event
Defending Champion: Jesús Montenegro
