The PGA Tour returns to Mexico next week as the Vidanta course in Nuevo Vallarta hosts its third consecutive Mexican Open Thursday, February 22 through Sunday, February 25.
Although 2023 champion Tony Finau is returning to defend his title, John Rahm, last year’s runner-up and the 2022 champion (and former world-ranked number one), will be absent, after he recently announced he is defecting to the rival LIV Golf Tour, the Public Investment Fund, the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia.
The Mexico Open, also known as the Abierto Mexicano de Golf, was first played in 1944, and although it only became an official event on the PGA Tour in 2022, has seen some illustrious winners over the years, including Roberto di Vicenzo (three times), Lee Trevino (twice), Stewart Cink (twice) and Ben Crenshaw.
The purse for this year’s event is $US8.1 million, and the winner will receive 500 FedExCup points.
In a bid to further promote golf in Mexico, several up-and-coming Mexican players will feature in the 132-strong field, including Jalisco’s Santiago de la Fuente, from the Azteca High-Performance Program (ARA), who was invited after his victory in the Latin American Amateur Championship in Panama.
Jose Alonso, director of operations for Grupo Vidanta, said the Vidanta Nuevo Vallarta resort offers “a family-friendly and secure environment, and exquisite gastronomy,” adding that the company aims to “consolidate (the resort) as a benchmark in Mexico’s sporting, economic and hospitality landscape.”
Tickets for the Mexico Open at Vidanta are on sale at ticketmaster.com.mx; children aged 12 or under enter for free (general admission only), accompanied by an adult with a general admission ticket.