Story by
2026 Mexico Open: Andrew Novak stays in control, claims second career win
- Story by
- 2026 Mexico Open: Andrew Novak stays in control, claims second career win
The runaway train that was Andrew Novak could not be stopped on Sunday at the VidantaWorld Mexico Open, despite a mostly sluggish start to his final round.
While he posted eight pars on his front nine and a bogey at the par-4 10th hole, Novak was still able to leave Vidanta Vallarta with the first individual championship of his career . He also nabbed the tournament scoring record at 25 under thanks to three straight birdies on the back nine when his putter reignited.
Advertisement
Novak won the two-man team Zurich Classic of New Orleans last year with Ben Griffin, who cheered him on at the 18th hole and took video of Novak's victory celebration.
"I played really well on the front but I didn't get much out of it, the putter was a little off," Novak told Golf Channel's Damon Hack moments after sealing the five-shot win. "I didn't separate much but I still had a lead — and 10 was a mistake, three terrible shots in a row. Recovered and made three birdies in a row and that settled everything."
"Obviously I love the Zurich and everything about that tournament but it's nice to have one by myself," he added. "I've been working toward this for a while. Not a great season for how I wanted it to go but this is a nice way to finish it."
With the milestone victory, the 31-year-old Novak moved from 89th in the FedExCup fall standings to 53rd. If he maintains a spot in the top 60 by fall's end, he will have eligibility into the first two signature events next season.
Advertisement
Sunday's birdie spree helped give Novak all the confidence he needed to close out the win on his back nine. With the circle at the par-5 12th, he regained a four-shot lead over Doug Ghim — one of his two final-round playing competitors.
He extended the lead to five and then six strokes, respectively, with a pair of birdies at Nos. 13 and 14. The latter birdie putt came from 44 feet out.
Novak carried a six-shot lead into the day after carding a 61 on Friday and a 62 a day later to reach 23 under through 54 holes.
In addition to Ghim, he held off closing charges from Steven Fisk (63) and Kris Ventura (63).
Advertisement
Fisk and Ventura, who were both bogey-free on Sunday, tied for second at 20 under after Ghim double bogeyed the final hole to drop to 18 under for the tournament.
It was the largest margin of victory in the tournament's history .
Like Novak, Fisk seems poised to leverage his start in Mexico into the top 60 of the fall standings. He's now 54th, with Ghim at No. 55.
Ventura moved from No. 108 to No. 76, which will secure his Tour card for 2027.
"Honestly I stopped chasing the rankings; I kind of got tired of always looking at the leaderboard and the projected points," Ventura told reporters after the final round. "If that helped me I would have done it a lot more, but I made peace with maybe not keeping my card this year. I just said I'm going to do my process and if I fall short, I fall short, but at least I'm going to do my very best so that I can fall asleep content at the end of the day."
Advertisement
Also near the top of the leaderboard in Mexico was Mackenzie Hughes, who finished T-4 with Griffin after a bogey on the par-4 16th dropped him out of a tie for second.
Hughes is now No. 101 in fall points after entering the week No. 118. The top 100 will earn Tour cards for next season.
"You get a text every week and you're aware, it's hard to hide from it," Hughes admitted to reporters. "So I feel like I just want to know roughly where I'm at and what I need to do. I know I've got three in front of me. I still need to play some high-level golf down the stretch, but this certainly gives me some breathing room on the like 101 to 110 would be still an OK spot to end up. I feel like that gives me some breathing room, puts me in a decent spot for [the top 100]."
Mexico Open At VidantaWorld 2025 - Final Round
VidantaWorld Mexico Open 2026 prize money: How much Andrew Novak gets from $6 million purse
Here's how much Mexico Open winner Andrew Novak is collecting from the $6 million purse at Vidanta Vallarta.
-
Still feeling rusty from Presidents Cup, Jacob Bridgeman shoots bogey-free 63 in Japan(golf_channel_versant_464)
-
Still feeling rusty from Presidents Cup, Jacob Bridgeman shoots bogey-free 63 in Japan(golf_channel_versant_464)
