No trophy, but Rafael Campos pleased with a great effort

RIO GRANDE, Puerto Rico – Part of Rafael Campos wanted to be disappointed in his finish at Sunday’s Puerto Rico Open. Looking to become the first Latino golfer to win the event, now in its 13th running, he’d started the final round tied for lead. But he didn’t hit the ball as solidly as he usually does and closed with 2-under 70, tying for third.

It still marked Campos’ best career finish on the PGA TOUR, coming on the heels of four missed cuts on the big circuit. (Campos did finish T7 at a Korn Ferry Tour event leading into Puerto Rico.) So the wiser part of him simply would not allow for any sorrow, regrets and “what ifs.” He looked outside a second floor window at Grand Reserve Country Club, a place just 40 minutes from where he grew up, and knew there was a much bigger picture.

“A good day,” Campos, 32, the only golfer from Puerto Rico currently playing on a major tour, said quietly to himself.

He wanted to give himself a chance late on Sunday, and Campos did that. After a slow front nine, Campos birdied the 10th and 11th holes and was in the thick of things, 17 under par, and one shot out of the lead. Two bad swings led to bogeys at the par-4 12th and 13th holes, and after hitting two great shots to set up birdie at the par-5 15th, he watched birdie putts he needed at the next two holes catch the edge of the hole and lip out. He finished three shots behind winner Branden Grace.

“I'm really happy with my round today knowing I thought I was swinging poorly and hitting poor shots and I was able to kind of work my way around the course with mis-hits after mis-hits and actually post an under-par round,” Campos said. “That gives me a lot of confidence for the upcoming tournaments.”

Campos is playing the PGA TOUR this season out of the top 50 category from the 2019 Korn Ferry Tour, and knows little is guaranteed in getting starts. His top-10 finish gets him into the PGA TOUR’s next open event, which is the Honda Classic in three weeks. Campos has worked his way through a bad elbow and a torn back muscle the past two seasons, and is grateful that he finally feels healthy to compete pain-free. It’s something he does not take for granted.

The Puerto Rico Open, now 13 years old, still is seeking its first Latino winner. But players such as Campos and runner-up Jhonattan Vegas, Sunday’s runner-up, said that it’s only a matter of time.

“One hundred percent it will (happen),” said Campos, who dedicated his round on Sunday to his good friend Hector Rivera, an avid golfer and positive influence who died earlier in the week. Campos got the sad news during his pro-am round on Wednesday that Rivera, had passed in California.

“Yeah, we’ll have a Latin player win this tournament,” he said. Campos smiled, then added, “Hopefully me.”

Edward Figueroa, a LatinoAmerica Tour player who hails from Puerto Rico and made the cut at this week’s Open, said Campos’ great play will do a great deal to inspire younger local players on the rise.

Said Figueroa, “Seeing somebody from the island do this well, at the top level of golf, might inspire them to say, ‘If he can do this, why can’t I?’ ”