Rafael Campos celebrated the birth of his daughter on Monday and now is in position for another big moment.
He set a personal best with a nine-under 62 on Saturday to share the lead going into the final round of the Butterfield Bermuda Championship.
Andrew Novak also shot a 62 on a day when the wind became ferocious toward the end of the round at Port Royal Golf Course, with gusts topping 40mph. Novak caught a break on the 18th when his tee shot was rolling back down a cart path and hopped onto the grass.
Justin Lower, who began the blustery day with a 62, drove into the water on the par-five 18th and scrambled for a bogey for a 68 to finish one shot behind.
Campos and Novak were at 16-under 197, both searching for their first victory. The timing couldn’t be better in so many ways for Campos, the 36-year-old from Puerto Rico with an abundance of gratitude that has made him a favourite among his peers.
He is No 147 in the FedExCup with one tournament remaining to try to get into the top 125 and keep full status for next year. And then his wife gave birth to their first child, Paola Isabel, on Monday.
There was no discussion about Campos playing. His job was at stake, which led them to induce labour. And he said it eased some of the stress he had been feeling after missing four straight cuts as his ranking kept falling.
“My wife is extremely understanding on where I’m standing on the FedEx, first of all,” he said, struggling to keep his emotions in check. “The whole process of trying to induce labor on Monday was for me to try to get to the tournament, so we were always looking to try to see if I can make it here.”
They got home from the hospital at about 5pm on Wednesday.
“I held my daughter. I thought in like 20 minutes I had to go to the airport,” he said. “I do want to provide for them as much as I can, so we’re here and fortunate everything went well. It’s a bonus that I’m doing well this week.”
It went great on Saturday in the strong wind, which Campos enjoys. He chipped in for birdie on the 15th, holed a 10-foot birdie putt on the scary par-three 16th, got up-and-down with another tester of a birdie putt on the 17th and held on for par on the closing hole.
The wind was out of a different direction. Players who had been hitting as little as wedge to the 18th earlier in the week were hitting as much as hybrids.
Lower said of the four-hole closing stretch: “I don’t think that’s golf if you ask me. Balls were going backwards in the air.”
South Africa’s Garrick Higgo was on nine-under 204 (T23) after a round of 67 that included an eagle, four birdies and two bogies.
– Edited report from PGA Tour website
Photo: Carmen Mandato/Getty Images
