Vilips Takes the Lead After First Round of the Mexico Open

Karl Vilips took the lead after the first round of the Mexico Open. Vilips, who played in the afternoon, shot nine under par with a 62, making five birdies in a row from the 11th through the 15th holes. He finished the round with a run of four birdies and also recorded one more birdie and one bogey along the way.

Vilips said he played the first nine holes very well, loosened up a bit in the middle stretch, but recovered toward the end of the round. Noting that staying in the fairway is essential on this course, he said he made good use of his tee shots.

Japan's Kensai Hirata finished second, one shot behind. Ben Griffin, Marco Penge, Garrick Higgo and Jeffrey Kang are chasing at 64. Hirata holed a 20-foot eagle putt on the 3rd hole and added two more birdies on the back nine. He is currently 170th in the FedEx Cup standings and wants to move up the rankings.

Mexico's Alvaro Ortiz shot 65 and completed the round without a bogey. Ortiz earned his PGA Tour card for next season through the Korn Ferry Tour. He had also won this tournament in 2021 while on the PGA Tour Latinoamerica schedule. The World Wide Technology Championship will be played in Los Cabos next week.