BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Manuel Merizalde of Colombia already had 5 birdies in eight holes Thursday and rode that to a 6-under 66, giving him a three-way share of the lead after the opening spherical of the Latin America Newbie Championship.
Patrick Sparks of Peru and Gabriel Palacios of Guatemala additionally had been at 66 on a day of fine scoring at Pilar Golf Membership. The winner will get an invite to the Masters and is exempt for the U.S. Open and The Open this 12 months.
Merizalde stands out for his age alone. He’s 45, some 20 years faraway from taking part in alongside Camilo Villegas in a World Cup and from taking part in at Brigham Younger. And he’s far faraway from taking part in golf as often as he as soon as did.
“I wasn’t anticipating a lot to inform you the reality. I’m 45 years outdated already. I don’t get to apply a lot,” Merizalde stated. “However typically that helps while you don’t have plenty of expectations, while you’re simply going out simply to have some enjoyable. The much less you strive, the higher you do.”
He works for a safety firm in Colombia and takes off Friday afternoons to play golf. Generally he’s lucky sufficient to play or apply twice every week.
But it surely labored from him at Pilar, his solely massive mistake a bogey on the par-5 tenth.
Palacios ran off 4 straight birdies on the again 9, giving the 19-year-old sophomore at Utah a 31 on the again. Sparks had seven birdies and an eagle to atone for just a few dropped pictures.
NOTES:
Augusta Nationwide, the R&A and USGA introduced that Lima Golf Membership in Peru would host the Latin America Newbie Championship subsequent 12 months. It had been scheduled for Peru in 2021 till getting canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. … Augusta Nationwide Chairman Fred Ridley stated the course doesn’t have “fairly as many bushes” as a 12 months in the past due to Hurricane Helene however in any other case was in spectacular form.
