Emiliano Grillo became on Monday the protagonist of the biggest climb within the top 100 of the world golf ranking. The Argentine, who had started last week in 80th place, climbed to the 42nd step of the rankings, after his victory in the Charles Schwab Challenge for the coveted PGA Tour.
It was the second conquest for Grillo in the most important circuit of professional golf. He arrived after more than seven years of waiting and a tiebreaker after an incredible finish at the Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, where he squandered a two-shot lead on the 18th hole, where his tee shot was nonstop to a drain pipe.
Emiliano Grillo's ball dragged down the drain. Photo: AFP
The top 5 of the world ranking remains with American Scottie Scheffler – who finished third in the tournament won by Grillo – in first place, followed by Spaniard Jon Rahm, Northern Ireland's Rory McIlroy and Americans Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.
Fellow American Max Homa gained a position to be sixth, to the detriment of Norway's Viktor Hovland, while Britain's Matt Fitzpatrick, now eighth, and Australia's Cameron Smith, ninth, also swap positions. The American Will Zalatoris maintains the tenth position.
The Chilean Joaquín Nieman is still the best Latin American and is in 31st place, while behind Grillo appear the Mexican Abraham Ancer, who drops to 49th and the also Chilean Mito Pereira, whodescends to 54th.
Grillo and the champion's Ford Bronco truck. Photo: AFP
Grillo's great victory
Emiliano Grillo won his second PGA Tour golf title on Sunday by winning the Charles Schwab Challenge. The victory allowed the Endurance native to pocket $1,566,000 and climb to 18th place in the FedEx Cup, the annual ranking of the American circuit.
Grillo, 30, had had his baptism as a winner on the world's main circuit on October 18, 2015 at the Frys.com Open, where he beat American Kevin Na in a tiebreaker. However, he had to wait seven years, seven months and eleven days or 2,780 days to lift a trophy again, this time also going through sudden death.
The Chaco golfer triumphed after two extra holes in the tiebreaker against Adam Schenk, after playing a high-level tournament and delivering a card of 68 strokes on Sunday.
Clenched fist for Emiliano Grillo. Photo: AFP
His triumph was compromised on the last hole, in which he lived an unusual situation: his tee shot went to a drainage channel through which the ball sailed several meters.
When the ball stopped, when it ran into a rock, Grillo had to drop with a penalty and leave it on a parallel path to make his third shot. He completed the hole with double bogey and his two-shot lead vanished.
However, on the second extra hole of the tiebreaker, on the par 3 of the 16th, Grillo, from the tee, got a favorable pique that made the ball finish in excellent position, less than two meters from the hole.
He did not forgive that opportunity and did not miss with the putt to be crowned champion in Fort Worth, the same tournament that 66 years ago won the legendary Roberto De Vicenzo. A detail: the prize that the Master received was only 5 thousand dollars. 0.3 percent of the check Grillo received.
Source: AFP
See also