Rafael

Campos

The 33-year-old Campos is looking to close the deal at Grand Reserve CC, where he finished T-3 in 2021, T-8 in 2016 and T-10 in 2017. Last year, he was the co-leader after 54 holes, but shot 70 in the final round to finish three shots back of winner Branden Grace of South Africa. After making just seven cuts in 25 starts on Tour last season, Campos has Korn Ferry Tour status this season. He kicked off 2022 with a T-63 in his first start at the Bahamas Great Exuma Classic but has since missed the cut in his next four consecutive starts.

The 33-year-old Campos has had a tough go of it this season, making just six cuts in 22 starts, but he arrives at TPC Twin Cities off a T-20 finish at last week’s Barbasol Championship, where he dropped rounds of 6-under 66 on Friday and Sunday. Despite his overall numbers, Campos does have two podium finishes in 2021. He finished T-3 at the Puerto Rico Open in February and T-2 at Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship in March. Capos told reporters last week in Kentucky that he feeds off those low-scoring early rounds and feels comfortable with this state of his game heading into Tokyo. “The game has felt great, to tell you the truth,” he said. “Scores absolutely do not justify how I feel, and it’s been a little frustrating, especially the last four months apart from the two good finishes. It’s been actually very frustrating, to tell you the truth, but everything feels really good. My swing feels great. Mentally I feel very strong with it. It hasn’t clicked, it really just hasn’t. Like I said, all it takes is that one round.”

The 33-year-old Campos, who will represent Puerto Rico in the upcoming Tokyo Olympics, has made just one cut in his last nine starts – a 56th at Palmetto – and is 5-for-21 overall this season, but he does have two podium finishes in 2021. He finished T-3 at the Puerto Rico Open in February and T-2 at Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship in March. Regarding expectations for this week, Campos told media Wednesday: “Hopefully another top-three (finish). …This course, I’m really happy because it’s Bermuda. I’m used to Bermuda. I told my caddie, when was it, Monday, I was like, ‘Oh, it’s kind of nice to get off of bent and poa the last four weeks.’ So I’m actually feeling really comfortable for this week. All I need is a good start, to tell you the truth. I’ve been struggling after those good finishes to start well in tournaments. I think if I just have one good solid round, it doesn’t have to be great that first day, I think everything changes for the rest of the week. I expect myself to actually finish really high if I just get that good start.” Last season as a rookie, Campos made five cuts in nine starts but did not play after the American Express due to a left-elbow injury.

Campos was fighting his swing for most of the week but he fought through it via local knowledge and course management. Campos has family in the Dominican Republic and calls this his second home. That home cooking helped trade 14 birdies with just three bogeys for the week. The latter was most impressive, to consider he swallowed just three bogeys (and nothing worse) after splitting just 35-of-56 fairways (T103). Campos showed a lot of emotion on the final hole of his day, having to hold back a fist pump when his final putt lipped out. It would have forced a playoff against his buddy, and playing partner, Joel Dahmen. It wasn’t meant to be today, but Campos did post a new personal-best in terms of a PGA TOUR finish (T2). It comes just a month after posting his previous best (T3 at the Puerto Rico Open). Playing out of the Korn Ferry Tour reshuffle category, starts aren’t the easiest to come by, but Campos now moves inside of the FedExCup Playoffs bubble in the projected standings (115th).

Campos calls this his second home and you could see his course knowledge bailing him out time and time again today. He split just nine (of 14) fairways and settled for just nine greens in regulation. It would have been very easy for him to sign for an over-par round with those ball-striking stats but he was a magician around the greens, going 8-for-9 scrambling. In fitting fashion, he walked off the course with a birdie bomb from the fringe at the par-4 18th, putting a cap on a scrappy round. “I hit the ball so bad, especially the last nine holes. I have to give credit to my caddie... It was a tough nine holes but I’m happy where I’m at.” He will now sleep on his second career 54-hole lead or co-lead on the PGA TOUR. It’s also the second 54-hole co-lead in the last month as he co-led the Puerto Rico Open last month and finished T3. He will need to tidy up the tee-to-green play if he wants to take home his first career PGA TOUR win tomorrow.

The Puerto Rico native split 11-of-14 fairways and pelted 15 greens in regulation. Both figures grade out very well when you consider the windy conditions. Campos wasn’t impressed with his iron play, though. “I felt driver I hit very well today except for one or two and I putted extremely well, which is the only thing that really saved me because I felt I hit my irons and wedges very poorly, but I was able to manage, at least mis-hit them like properly and end up on the greens or on the proper sides.” It was great course management to maintain a blemish-free round when the irons weren’t landing where he wanted them to. If this lead holds it will be his second 36-hole lead or co-lead on the PGA TOUR (2016 Puerto Rico Open, T8). Adding to his comfort here, Campos revealed that his family actually has had a home here for 20 years and he plays this course whenever they are on vacation. That local knowledge is certainly paying off so far but he’ll need to keep his foot on the pedal for two more days.

The Puerto Rico native has six PGA TOUR finishes of T32 or better and five of them have come on coastal courses (Puerto Rico Open x3, Bermuda Championship, RBC Heritage). That says a lot about his ability to flight the ball and manage his game in windy conditions. That was definitely the case today as the afternoon wave dealt with wind gusts of 20 to 25 MPH. For Campos, his split 8-of-14 fairways and landed 12 greens in regulation. Neither leaps off the page but the ball-striking was certainly serviceable when you factor the playing conditions. Campos currently has a slice of fourth place which is the seventh time he’s posted inside of the top 20 of a PGA TOUR event (again, all of those previous instances came on coastal courses). His comfort on this style of course makes him a name to watch closely as the week progresses.

The Puerto Rico native started his day with a share of the lead but that quickly evaporated as he saw others around him going low. As for Campos, the birdies weren’t dropping as he settled for eight pars and a birdie on his outward nine before adding three more circles on his way into the clubhouse (10, 11, 15). The field average today was 69.84 so Campos’ 70 was on the wrong end of that from a SG:Total perspective. Despite the sub-par finish today, this still goes in the book as a big week for the VCU product. It’s his career-best finish on the PGA TOUR (previously a solo 7th at the 2017 Houston Open). It’s also a win for gamers who follow course history or local knowledge to guide their picks. Campos did not enter the week with much form to speak of, but four of his six best finishes on TOUR have now come at Grand Reserve Country Club.

The local product has landed 14 or more greens in each of his first three rounds played this week at Grand Reserve Country Club (16, 14, 15). For the week, he ranks T2 in GIR Percentage (83%). That has kept his rounds relatively stress-free and kept his scorecards relatively clean (just three bogeys all week while battling windy conditions). Campos is now in somewhat familiar territory. This will be his third time entering the final round of the PR Open sitting inside of the top 5. However, it will be his first time leading or co-leading after 54 holes of any PGA TOUR event. His career-best finish on the big stage is a solo 7th at the 2017 Houston Open.

The big hitter has his best driving day of the week, piping 10-of-14 fairways to make his task much easier on approach. From there, he pelted 16 greens in regulation, impressive when you consider the windy conditions he was battling for most of the day. On the week he has 18 birdies (T2) and an eagle. Murray has never held a 54-hole lead or co-lead on the PGA TOUR but he did win the 2017 Barbasol Championship so he knows how to deliver the goods in an alternate-field event. “it’s been a long time since I have been in a situation like this, but I’m not afraid of the moment. And at the end of the day, you still got to play good golf, no matter who’s chasing you or who I’m chasing. So Sunday pressure is always a little different. But, yeah, I mean, there’s some good players at the top, and it will be good, a good fight out there.” Murray arrived without a top 40 over his last 17 starts so to say this came out of the blue would be an understatement.