SOUTHAMPTON, Bermuda (AP) — Rafael Campos always dreamed of being a PGA Tour winner. He never could have imagined when it would happen and just how much it would mean.
He had missed five straight cuts and was in danger of not having a card on any tour. Campos arrived in Bermuda about 90 minutes before his tee time to start the tournament, unsure he could even play until his pregnant wife had labor induced and gave birth to their first child on Monday.
No wonder he felt like he was living a fairy tale Sunday.
He hit all the right shots, none better than a 2-iron to 2 feet on the par-5 seventh during a surge that sent him to a 3-under 68 and a three-shot victory in the Bermuda Championship, joining the late Chi Chi Rodriguez as the only Puerto Rican players to win on the PGA Tour.
“I just can’t believe this is actually happening to me,” Campos said through the sobs when he was interviewed on the 18th green.
The 36-year-old Campos, in only his second full year on the PGA Tour, was No. 147 in the FedEx Cup with time running out — the season ends next week — to get into the top 125 and keep his card. That's what was causing so much stress inside the ropes.
And then Paola Isabel was born on Monday, giving Campos peace and perspective.
“It has been a surreal week,” he said. “I’m just extremely happy to be a champion and not have to worry about where I’m going to be playing the next couple of years.”
He is going places he has never been. Campos has never played in a major. Now he's going to the Masters and the PGA Championship. The victory gives him full status on the PGA Tour through 2026.
Campos won by three shots over Andrew Novak, who shot 71 for his best PGA Tour finish. Novak pulled within two shots when Campos missed an 18-inch par putt on the 14th par. Campos was not rattled until he lost control of his emotions after the final putt.
“It's been an unbelievable week — best week of my life,” he said. “Such a bad year, and to have things go my way — everything together at once — I'm just so happy. I'm grateful to call myself a PGA Tour champion. It's something I've dreamt about my entire life.”
Campos, who finished at 19-under 265, earned $1.242 million and a two-year exemption, which might be more valuable considering how hard it has been to just get on tour over the last decade. Campos gets into The Sentry to start the year at Kapalua, along with The Players Championship, and the two majors.
He was tied with Novak to start the final round, and both were passed quickly by Justin Lower, a runner-up last week in Mexico.
That changed when Campos worked the wind flawlessly, setting up a 6-foot birdie putt on No. 6 and the eagle on the next hole. And it changed for Lower, who four-putted for double bogey on the par-3 eighth and never quite recovered.
Campos used his imagination in hitting shots through the wind, and it paid off on No. 10 when his shot rolled out to 18 inches for birdies, and on the next hole when he rammed in another birdie putt from 15 feet.
Then it was a matter of finishing in conditions so windy and tough that even short putts were being blown off line. Campos didn't take a wrong step aside of the 18-inch putt he missed.
A few friends rushed onto the 18th green to spray him with bubbly, and he took a swig to celebrate a week he never imagined.
“It's been such a bad year ball-striking wise,” Campos said. “This game is so hard when things aren't going well, so hard to actually get yourself to be confidence. Things have just been so different this week. I just don't know. I'm just so grateful.”
___
AP golf: https://apnews.com/hub/golf
