
First-time PGA Tour winner takes advantage of 'bounce of a career' to win 2025 Mexico Open
First-time PGA Tour winner takes advantage of 'bounce of a career' to win 2025 Mexico Open
Brian Campbell's journey to his first victory on the PGA Tour took so many twists and turns that it was only fitting that he finally caught a good break.
Playing the par-5 18th hole at Vidanta Vallarta on Sunday for the third time in the last hour, Campbell benefited from a fortuitous bounce off his tee shot, which peeled right and was headed out of bounds.
'That was the bounce of a career,' NBC's Notah Begay III said.
Campbell's ball spit out of the trees, bounced off the cart path and he took advantage.
The 31-year-old journeyman sank a 4-foot birdie putt on the second playoff hole to beat Aldrich Potgieter and win the 2025 Mexico Open at VidantaWorld. Asked how he finally made it to the winner's circle, Campbell needed just one word: "Grit."
That and a little bit of luck.
Campbell had never recorded a top-10 finish in his previous 27 starts on the PGA Tour and was winless in 186 combined starts on the Tour and Korn Ferry Tour. With his tee shot in the playoff in the right rough, he set up a wedge in his wheelhouse and planted it 4 feet from the hole. After Potgieter's birdie effort slid by on the left, Campbell converted for the win.
Campbell shot a final-round 1-under 70 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, to post 20-under par 264 on a day where no one seemed to want to take home the trophy and winner's check for $1.26 million.
'I thought I was going to throw up at multiple times during the day,' he said.
The playoff set up as a matchup of opposites. It was The Prodigy Vs The Journeyman, Power Vs Grit and ended as one of those weeks where the snail hit the tape before the hare.
Campbell, a 31-year-old Illini product, had been the Big 10 Player of the Year in 2014 and low amateur at the 2015 U.S. Amateur but had flamed out in his one trip to the PGA Tour in 2017. It took him eight years to get back and he admitted he had nearly given up.
'I almost stopped golfing about two years ago,' said Campbell, who was in danger of flunking out of second stage of PGA Tour Qualifying School after making a quadruple-bogey at a par 3. 'Then somehow managed to fight back the next day and shoot a really nice number, got myself back in it enough to get to final stage. That led to last year and I had a really strong last year. It's crazy how quickly things can change.'
In 2024, he notched three runner-up finishes on the Korn Ferry Tour last season to finish seventh on the money list and graduate back to the PGA Tour for the first time since the 2017-18 season. Of the chance to do battle with Potgieter in the final threesome on Sunday, Campbell said, 'It's what dreams are made of, this is why I've worked so hard to get back there.'
Potgieter is raw and full of promise, which he showed with a course-record 61 on Friday. At age 20 years, 5 months, the South African was attempting to become the sixth-youngest player on Tour to win since the start of the 1983 season. He already holds the distinction of being the youngest winner in the history of the Korn Ferry Tour at 19 years, 4 months and 11 days for his victory at the 2024 Bahamas Great Abaco Classic at The Abaco Club. When he won the 2022 British Amateur at Royal Lytham and St Annes, he became the second youngest winner in the events 127-year history at the age of 17. Potgieter is the longest driver on the Tour this season while Campbell ranked No. 182. This week, Potgieter only averaged 40 yards longer off the tee.
'It's hard to look at a guy next to you hitting it 60 to 80 yards past you, but you've really just got to stay focused on what you're there to do and do the best you can,' Campbell said.
Trusting his strengths, he ranked first in Strokes Gained: Tee to Green, second in SG: Around the Green and fourth in SG: Approach. Both Campbell and Potgieter, who shot a final-round even-par 71, made short birdies at 18 in regulation to edge Isaiah Salinda, who had been the leader in the clubhouse at 19 under after a bogey-free 65.
'To at least give myself a chance was all I wanted to do today. I thought honestly being however many back I was, like seven, I knew it was a long shot,' Salinda said.
Potgieter struggled with his short game, making three of his four bogeys on the front nine. He tugged his second shot on the first playoff hole left and was lucky that Campbell missed his first chance for the win.
'I guess I just wanted to keep the party going a little longer but not by design,' Campbell said.
Potgieter still said he was proud of his effort.
'Pressure's a big thing. You can't really beat it, you just have to learn and adjust to it next time you're in this position again,' he said. 'Hopefully my time will come soon.'
Campbell picked quite the way to earn his first career top-10 finish on Tour. When his winning putt dropped, his girlfriend, Kelsi McKee, dropped to her knees and burst into tears of joy.
'That's exactly how I felt on the inside,' Campbell said. 'Yeah, it's really hard to put it into words. You play so hard, you put your heart out there, you grind not just four days but really all week long we're out here. So to have it culminate like this has just been really special.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Rory McIlroy Shares Troubling Message Ahead of U.S. Open
Rory McIlroy Shares Troubling Message Ahead of U.S. Open originally appeared on Athlon Sports. After a two-week hiatus from the PGA Tour following the PGA Championship, Rory McIlroy returned to action this week at the RBC Canadian Open—but his time in the tournament was short-lived. Advertisement McIlroy struggled mightily over both rounds, never finding a consistent rhythm across the 36 holes he played. He ultimately missed the cut—and by a wide margin. The 2025 Masters champion shot a 71 on Thursday followed by a disappointing 78 on Friday, finishing at nine-over par. The cut line stood at two-under. Now, with a chance to regroup ahead of the third major of the year—the U.S. Open at Oakmont—McIlroy offered a concerning message about his performance in Canada. "Of course it concerns me," McIlroy said on Friday after his round. "You don't want to shoot high scores like the one I did today. Still, I felt like I came here obviously with a new driver thinking that that sort of was going to be good and solve some of the problems off the tee, but it didn't."He continued, "Obviously, going to Oakmont next week, what you need to do more than anything else there is hit fairways. Still sort of searching for the sort of missing piece off the tee." Rory McIlroy lines up his tee shot on the 14th tee during the final round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at Quail Doster-Imagn Images Rory McIlroy has had an outstanding year by any measure. His most significant achievement came at Augusta National, where he captured his first Masters title and completed the career Grand Slam. He also added victories at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am and The Players Championship to round out an impressive season. Advertisement However, in comments this week, McIlroy admitted that maintaining motivation has been a challenge since his win at Augusta. After chasing the Masters for more than a decade, he said it's been difficult to find that extra edge and drive to compete at the same level. "I would certainly say that the last few weeks—I've had a couple of weeks off—and going and grinding on the range for three or four hours everyday is maybe a little tougher than it used to be," he told reporters. "You have this event in your life that you've worked towards and it happens, sometimes it's hard to find the motivation to get back on the horse and go again." Related: Fans Appalled By Rory McIlroy's Latest U.S. Open Blunders This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 7, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Justin Thomas Sends Strong Message About Scottie Scheffler Ahead of U.S. Open
Justin Thomas Sends Strong Message About Scottie Scheffler Ahead of U.S. Open originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The third major of the year is set to begin on Thursday, and with players already arriving at Oakmont Country Club in Pennsylvania, media duties have begun for many on the PGA Tour. Advertisement One player who spoke to the media was Justin Thomas, who has put together a solid 2025 campaign so far and will look to find success on the challenging Oakmont course. His best finish at the U.S. Open came in 2020, when he tied for eighth place. Thomas ended his winless drought since 2022 with a victory at the RBC Heritage in April. Despite that, he remains ranked No. 5 in the world. This week, he was asked a simple question about World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, who has been dominant over the past two months on Tour and Thomas had a clear and in depth answer. Thomas was asked, 'What is Scottie Scheffler doing that is so special? What do you say?' Advertisement 'What is he doing?' Thomas replied. 'Well, everything.' Scottie Scheffler and Justin Thomas walk off the no. 5 tee during the first round of the Masters Tournament.© Kyle Terada-Imagn Images He continued: 'It's effortless. Every single aspect of his game is unbelievable. I think his mental game is better than anybody else's out here. To be able to play with those expectations and to stay present as often as he has—to me, that's maybe more impressive than even the golf he's playing. 'I just think it's so, so hard to do, and it's also hard to explain if you're in his shoes. He just doesn't make mistakes and almost lets himself be in contention rather than forcing it. He just seems to be playing better.' Scottie Scheffler has been the most dominant golfer in the world by a wide margin over the past two to three years. In a sport where consistency is notoriously difficult to maintain week to week, he has managed to do exactly that. Advertisement Scheffler has already recorded four PGA Tour wins this year, including a major victory at the PGA Championship. Remarkably, he has not missed a cut since 2022—his streak now stands at 56 consecutive events. He also enters the U.S. Open with seven straight top-10 finishes. According to DraftKings Sportsbook, Scheffler is the clear favorite heading into the U.S. Open—a tournament he has yet to win. Trailing him on the odds board are defending champion Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm, and Rory McIlroy. Related: Rory McIlroy Shares Troubling Message Ahead of U.S. Open This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 10, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Scottie Scheffler Has No Doubt Naming Hardest PGA Tour Course Before U.S. Open
Scottie Scheffler Has No Doubt Naming Hardest PGA Tour Course Before U.S. Open originally appeared on Athlon Sports. The top players in the world have arrived at Oakmont this week ahead of day one of the U.S. Open, which begins Thursday and marks the third major of the year on the PGA Tour. Advertisement One thing has been made clear over the first two days of practice: the course is brutally difficult—especially when players find themselves in the rough. Several stars, including Xander Schauffele, Bryson DeChambeau, Tyrrell Hatton, and Scottie Scheffler, have all commented on how thick and punishing the grass is around the greens. On Tuesday, Scheffler had zero doubt in calling Oakmont the hardest course he—and likely anyone else in the field—will ever play. "I kind of equate some of the major tests to... I mean, like the majors in tennis—you're playing on different surfaces: grass, clay, and then hard court—and it's a different style of game," Scheffler said. "The U.S. Open compared to the Masters is a completely different type of test. At the Masters, you have a lot more shot-making when you get around the green because it's mostly fairway. "And then when you get here, it's a lot of hacking out of the rough. You still have to be extremely precise, but when you talk about strength and power, I think that becomes more of a factor at these tournaments. Because when you hit it in the rough, you have to muscle it out of there." Scheffler added, "I mean, this is probably the hardest golf course that we'll play—maybe ever." Scheffler has had another remarkable year and is the undisputed world No. 1. After a historic 2024 campaign, he may not quite match that pace, but he's still on track for another legendary run in 2025. Advertisement He already has four tournament victories this season, including his first PGA Championship title—which marked his third career major win. Two of those three major victories have come at the Masters. The U.S. Open and The Open Championship are the final two tournaments Scheffler needs to win in order to complete the career Grand Slam—a feat Rory McIlroy accomplished earlier this year after winning at Augusta, becoming just the sixth player in history to do so. Scottie Scheffler addresses the crowd after winning the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday golf Doster-Imagn Images Scheffler skipped the RBC Canadian Open this past week to get in extra preparation for Oakmont, where the conditions could lead to some high scores. It wouldn't be surprising if only a handful of players finish at or just under par heading into Sunday. Advertisement Related: Justin Thomas Sends Strong Message About Scottie Scheffler Ahead of U.S. Open This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 11, 2025, where it first appeared.