Todd claims Mexico title for 2nd straight victory in big turnaround

Brendon Todd extended his winning streak to a second successive PGA title with victory at the Mayakoba Classic on Monday.

Todd had to dig deep to close with a 3-under 68 and emerge victorious in the second consecutive tournament in a remarkable turnaround.

Todd was sharing the lead with Vaughn Taylor, when the duo, along with the 12 other players, returned to the course to complete the rain-marred tourney.

The 34-year-old Todd could not have imagined this position a few years ago, when he had a case of the full yips and began thinking about another career.

Todd holed a birdie putt on the 15th hole and looked set to stretch his lead to two shots before missing a 3-foot par putt on the 16th hole.

With no margin for error, he made par on the last two holes. Taylor had a 15-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole that stopped one turn short of falling.

The 34-year-old Todd could not have imagined this turnaround in the fortunes a few years ago, when he had a case of the full yips and was pondering over other career.

Meanwhile, Taylor shot 68 and tied for second with Carlos Ortiz and Adam Long. From February 2016 through the end of 2018, he played 35 times on the PGA Tour and missed the cut all but twice.

But he battled through it, got his game in reasonable shape last year, earned his card through the Korn Ferry Tour Finals and now is leading the FedEx Cup as the PGA Tour heads to its final event before a short winter break.

“It’s just amazing how fast this game can turn,” Todd said. “It turned fast in the wrong direction for me in 2015, it turned fast the other direction for me, so I’m enjoying it and I’m just going to keep grinding.” The victory also gets Todd into the Masters for the first time in five years. He has one event left at Sea Island next week, and then heads to Maui for the Sentry Tournament of Champions at Kapalua.

Ortiz was going after his first PGA Tour victory before a home crowd in Mexico, needing a birdie on the 18th hole, which yielded only four birdies to 164 players on the weekend. He did well to scramble for par, and then had to wait to see if it would get him into a playoff.

Todd found a good lie in the rough left of the fairway, and he hit that left of the green into another decent lie. He lofted a pitch to just over 3 feet and made the putt, finishing at 20-under 264.

Taylor saved par from about 5 feet on the 15th hole when he returned in the morning. He caught a bad break from a greenside bunker right of the 16th when his ball came to rest right in front of a ridge, leaving him no chance to put any spin on the ball. The best he could manage was 10 feet, and his par putt turned away.

Todd gave him life by missing his 3-footer to keep the margin at one. Taylor’s last chance was right in the heart of the cup, just an inch short.

“Warming up this morning the greens were a little slow,” said Taylor, trying to win for the first time since Pebble Beach in 2016.

“I was a little nervous, so usually come up short when I’m nervous.” Harris English was one shot behind when he returned and missed a 15-foot birdie putt on the 15th hole to match Todd. Then, his shot into the 16th was plugged so badly in the bunker that it took him two shots to get out, leading to a double bogey that ended his chance.

Ortiz had the best finish by a Mexican in the Mayakoba Classic since it began in 2007. Abraham Ancer tied for eighth, making it two Mexicans among the top 10. Ancer was one of six players in the field who are in the Presidents Cup in December.

Associated Press