The PGA Tour had its only stop in Asia this past weekend, and for the second time ever, a non-American won the Zozo Championship. After 72 holes at the Narashino Country Club in Japan, the champion was Nico Echavarria of Medellin, Colombia.
Echavarria posted a four round score of -20. He had a first and second round score of six-under-par 64, a third round score of five-under-par 65, and a fourth round score of three-under-par 67.
Echavarria defeated two Americans by a stroke. Those in second place were Americans Justin Thomas of Louisville, Kentucky and Max Greyserman of Short Hills, New Jersey, at -19. Thomas is a two-time major champion, as he won the 2017 PGA Championship and 2022 PGA Championship. Meanwhile, fellow American Rickie Fowler of Murrieta, California was also in contention, as he was three strokes off the lead at -17 in fourth place.
In the 72 holes of golf for Echavarria, there was one eagle. That came on the 18th hole in round three. Echavarria posted a score of three on a par five. He had a 300 yard tee shot, and an amazing 241 yard approach shot that landed two feet and eight inches from the hole. Prior to the eagle, Echacvarria and Thomas were tied for the lead at -15, and then Echavarria took a two stroke lead.
The first time a non-American won the Zozo Championship came in 2021. That is when 2021 Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama dominated the field, posted a score of -15, and beat his closest competitors, Americans Brendan Steele and Idyllwild, California, and Cameron Tringale of Mission Viejo, California, by five strokes.
Echavarria’s first PGA Tour win came in 2023. That is when he posted a score of -21 to beat American Akshay Bhatia of Northridge, California by two strokes to win the Puerto Rico Open.
This was the sixth straight PGA tournament where the champion posted a score of -20 or better. The previous five were Scottie Scheffler of Ridgewood, New Jersey (-30 at the Tour Championship in Atlanta, Georgia on September 1), Patton Kizzire of Montgomery, Alabama (-20 at the Procore Championship in Napa Valley, California on September 15), Kevin Yu of Taoyuan, Taiwan (-23 at the 2024 Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Mississippi), Matt McCarty of Scottsdale, Arizona (-23 at the Black Desert Classic in Ivins, Utah), and J.T. Poston of Hickory, North Carolina (-22 at the Shriners Children’s Open in Las Vegas, Nevada).
