News

2017 OHL Classic at Mayakoba

• Playa del Carmen, Mexico
• November 9-12, 2017
• Par/Yards: 36-35—71/6,987
• El Camaleón Golf Club at Mayakoba Resort
• Purse: $7,100,010
• FedExCup Points: 500 (winner)
• Completed Second-Round Notes – Saturday, November 11, 2017
• Weather: Weather: Overcast, with spotty showers throughout the day. Wind ENE 7-15, with gusts to 20 mph.
• The third round ended at 12:30 p.m. Sunday. The leaders began the final round at 12:50 p.m. and completed the round at 5:44 p.m. The tournament experienced a total of 7 hours, 25 minutes of delays.
• This marks the third PGA TOUR event of the season (of seven) to be impacted by inclement weather (CIMB Classic, Sanderson Farms Championship).
• The third and fourth rounds utilized preferred lies and there was no re-pairing of groups between rounds.
• Final-Round Leaderboard
  

  Patton Kizzire	62-70-66-67—265 (-19)
  Rickie Fowler	65-67-67-67—266 (-18)
  Si Woo Kim	67-68-69-65—269 (-15)
  Charles Howell III	68-70-66-66—270 (-14)
  Martin Piller	66-68-71-65—270 (-14)

Patton Kizzire

• In just his second start at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba (T58/2015), Patton Kizzire held off a dramatic challenge from Rickie Fowler, who birdied two of the last three holes, to post his first victory on the PGA TOUR. Kizzire held at least a share of the lead after each round and led by four over Fowler when he hit his tee shot into the hazard on the par-5 13th hole and managed to save par, holing a critical 8-footer. Fowler birdied No. 13 to close the gap to three. Both players parred the final hole, allowing Kizzire the one-stroke win. Kizzire’s 4-under 67 was one of four bogey-free final rounds on Sunday.
• Kizzire’s first PGA TOUR victory came in his 63rd start at the age of 31 years, 8 months, 9 days. He becomes fully exempt through the 2019-20 PGA TOUR season and earns 500 FedExCup points, a spot in the field at the 2018 Sentry Tournament of Champions, THE PLAYERS Championship, Masters Tournament, PGA Championship and select Invitational PGA TOUR events. He also earns 500 points towards making the 2019 U.S. Presidents Cup team.
• Kizzire has advanced to the FedExCup Playoffs both seasons he’s been eligible. He finished No. 99 last season and No. 82 in the 2015-16 season. He entered this week at No. 30 in the FedExCup standings and moves to the No. 1 spot with this victory. With 649 points, Kizzire leads the FedExCup by 3 points over last year’s OHL Classic at Mayakoba champion Pat Perez.
• In the 10-year history of the OHL Classic at Mayakoba, six third-round leaders/co-leaders converted for the win. Before Kizzire, who led after 54 holes this week, the most recent to achieve the feat was Graeme McDowell in 2015.
• This marked Kizzire’s third time to lead/co-lead after 54 holes on the PGA TOUR. He finished T4 at the 2015 Sanderson Farms Championship and solo-second at the 2016 Safeway Open after holding a 1-stroke lead after the third round.
• Kizzire is off to a solid start in the 2017-18 PGA TOUR Season, having finished T10 at the Sanderson Farms Championship and T4 a week later the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open last week.
• Kizzire claimed three top-10 finishes last season on the PGA TOUR, highlighted by a solo-second at the season-opening Safeway Open.
• In 2015, Kizzire won twice on the Web.com Tour. He attributes a move to Sea Island, Georgia in 2012 as the key to his success on the Web.com Tour and eventually the PGA TOUR. Next week’s event, The RSM Classic, is played at Sea Island.
• Kizzire’s statistics for the week:
  Driving Distance: 289.3 (21st)
  Fairways Hit in Regulation: 35/56 (T52)
  Greens Hit in Regulation: 54/72
  Scrambling: 13/18 (13th)
  Putting: 107
• Patton Kizzire Bio
  EXEMPT STATUS: 99th in 2016-17 FedExCup points
  FULL NAME: Maxie Patton Kizzire
  HEIGHT: 6-5
  WEIGHT: 215
  BIRTHDATE: March 3, 1986
  BIRTHPLACE: Montgomery, Alabama RESIDENCE: Sea Island, Georgia
  FAMILY: Wife, Kari 
EDUCATION: Auburn University (2008, Business)
  SPECIAL INTERESTS: Bow hunting, fishing
  TURNED PROFESSIONAL: 2008
  CLUB AFFILIATION: Ocean Forest GC (Sea Island, Georgia); Sea Island Resort (Sea Island, Georgia) 
Web.com Tour Graduate (2015)
  JOINED TOUR: 2016

Rickie Fowler

• Making his first start in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba and of the 2017-18 PGA TOUR Season, four-time PGA TOUR winner Rickie Fowler fired a third consecutive 67, including three birdies in the last six holes, to challenge Patton Kizzire down the stretch but come up one stroke short at 18-under 266.
• Fowler is coming off a solid 2016-17 PGA TOUR Season, highlighted by 10 top-10 finishes in 21 starts. Early in the season, he claimed his fourth career TOUR title at The Honda Classic.
• The 2017 Honda Classic was the only title Fowler claimed when not coming from behind in the final round. At PGA National, he led by four strokes after 54 holes.
• Fowler was seeking to become the fifth player to win the OHL Classic at Mayakoba in his first start, looking to join Johnson Wagner (2011), John Huh (2012) Harris English (2013) and Fred Funk (2007, inaugural event).
• Fowler earned $766,800 for the solo-second and will surpass $30 million in career earnings.
• Fowler is one of eight players in this week’s field who competed in the 2017 Presidents Cup. He was joined by Si Woo Kim and Emiliano Grillo, both of who represented the International team at Liberty National, as three of the eight to finish in the top 10 this week.

Si Woo Kim

• Si Woo Kim, the youngest winner of THE PLAYERS last season, was 6-under through 13 holes in the final round before blocking his tee shot into a hazard at No. 14 to eventually record a double bogey. He bounced back with birdies at No. 15 and 17 to close with 6-under 65 and finish third.
• SIn 2015, Kim sat T3 through 36 holes at this event after rounds of 68-64, but weekend rounds of 72-70 saw him finish T17. Kim withdrew from this event before the opening round last year.
• SThis marks Kim’s fourth top-3 finish on the PGA TOUR, including wins at THE PLAYERS Championship this year and the Wyndham Championship in 2016. Kim also lost a playoff at the 2016 Barbasol Championship to Aaron Baddeley.

Charles Howell III

• Charles Howell posted his second consecutive 5-under 66 to finish five back of winner T4 at 14-under 270. It marked his best performance in nine appearances at the OHL Classic at Mayakoba. His T6 in 2014 and T7 last year are his only other top-10s at this event. Howell now owns 10 consecutive rounds at El Camaleon GC.
• This marks Howell’s 85th career top-10 finish in his 501st start on the PGA TOUR. Howell was in search of his third PGA TOUR victory and first since the 2007 Genesis Open at Riviera, 304 starts ago. It’s been 15 years since his first career TOUR victory, the 2002 Michelob Championship at Kingsmill.
• With his T4 finish, Howell moves from No. 43 to No. 18 in the FedExCup Standings. Howell is one of 13 players who has advanced to the FedExCup Playoffs all 11 seasons.
• Howell has improved in each of his four starts this season (T51/CIMB Classic, T19/THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES, T15/WGC-HSBC Champions, T4/OHL Classic at Mayakoba).
• The Augusta native was seeking to secure an invite to the 2018 Masters, where he has not been qualified since 2012.
• Howell missed about 10 weeks in the middle of last season due to a rib injury, but returned from the injury to lose a playoff to Kyle Stanley at The National at TPC Potomac at Avenel. It was his 16th career runner-up result.

Martin Piller

• Martin Piller began the final round with a bogey before producing an eagle and six birdies, including four-in-a-row (Nos. 9-13), to fire a 6-under 65 for a T4 result, his career-best finish and third career top-10 in 52 starts. Both previous top-10 finishes came in his home state of Texas in 2016 (T4/Valero Texas Open, T6/DEAN & DELUCA Invitational).
• Piller had failed to make the cut in two previous starts in the OHL Classic at Mayakoba (2016, 2011).
• Piller made 25 birdies, matching winner Patton Kizzire for most this week.
• Piller required just 97 putts for the week, the first player to take less than 100 putts in a tournament since Jason Day (95) at the 2017 BMW Championship.

Abraham Ancer

• Despite a bogey at his final hole (No. 9), Abraham Ancer, one of five Mexican players in the field this week, fired a final-round 3-under 68 to finish T9, the leading player from Mexico. Ancer joined Oscar Fraustro and Carlos Ortiz, sharing the best result of any Mexican players in the history of this event. The pair finished T9 in 2014. Here’s a look at this week’s performances of other players from Mexico; Oscar Fraustro (T25), Roberto Diaz (T25), Carlos Ortiz (T45), and Jose de Jesus Rodriguez (MC).

Miscellaneous Notes

• Ryan Moore (T6), with a 3-under 68, was one of four players to fire a bogey-free final round. Moore’s only previous appearance in this event resulted in a T23 finish in 2013. Moore now owns 61 top-10 finishes in 308 career PGA TOUR starts. In his third start this season, Moore produced his best result (T6/OHL Classic at Mayakoba, T17/Safeway Open, T51/Shriners Hospitals for Children Open). Scott Brown (T6) posted four rounds in the 60s for the second time in six appearances at this event. With four rounds in the 60s in the 2015 event, Brown finished T5 at 14-under 270. Brown made his fifth start of the season, with a T5 at THE CJ CUP @ NINE BRIDGES being his strongest showing. Last season, he amassed eight top-25 finishes, two of which were top-10 showings, en route to a 55th-place finish in the 2016-17 FedExCup. Brown made his 166th career start on the PGA TOUR this week since his rookie year of 2012. His lone victory came at the 2013 Puerto Rico Open. John Oda, a sponsor exemption playing his first PGA TOUR event as a professional, from Honolulu, Hawaii finished solo-eighth at 12-under 272. The top-10 result makes the new-comer eligible for a spot in the upcoming PGA TOUR event, The RSM Classic. After making the cut on the number at 1-under 141, defending champion Pat Perez fired a final-round 66 (-5) to finish T34 at 6-under 278. The best performance by a defending OHL Classic at Mayakoba champion is 12th by Cameron Beckman in 2011. Eight past champions of the OHL Classic at Mayakoba made starts this week: Pat Perez/2016 (T34), Graeme McDowell/2015 (T34), John Huh/2012 (T25), Johnson Wagner/2011 (T61), Brian Gay/2008 (T25), Charley Hoffman/2014 (MC), Harris English/2013 (MC) and Mark Wilson/2009 (MC). Only Fred Funk (2007) and Cameron Beckman (2010) are missing.
• Bogey-free rounds:
  R1: Vaughn Taylor (64), Rickie Fowler (65), Patrick Rodgers (67), Ben Silverman (68), Brian Stuard (69), Richy Werenski (69).
  R2: Brian Gay (65), Roberto Diaz (65), Denny McCarthy (65), Alex Cejka (67), Matt Jones (67), Emiliano Grillo (67), Kevin Streelman (68), Si Woo Kim (68), Brice Garnett (68), Ryan Armour (69).
  R3: Whee Kim (67), Ryan Moore (67), Alex Cejka (68), Kevin Streelman (69).
  R4: Brian Stuard (65), Charles Howell III (66), Patton Kizzire (67), Ryan Moore (68).

• Scoring Averages at the par-71 El Camaleón Golf Club:
  

  	Front 9	Back 9	Total	Cumulative
  R1:	35.341	35.008	70.348	---
  R2:	35.409	35.094	70.504	70.425
  R3:	35.1289	35.5269	70.6549	70.502
  R4:	34.8089	34.8469	69.6549	70.290