Emiliano Grillo finished 2nd at the 3M Open in Minnesota and continues to rise in all the rankings

It is still difficult for him to close the tournaments and win, but Emiliano Grillo continues to advance by leaps and bounds in pursuit of improving his situation on the PGA Tour. The second place he achieved this Sunday at the 3M Open, in Blaine, Minnesota, allowed him to climb 39th place in the FedEx Cup and reach 53rd place, while surely he will appear again near the first 100 places in the world ranking.

Since the start of this month the man from Chaco notably improved his performance and transformed a poor season into a very good one, thanks to two second places (the other, in the John Deere Classic) and his participation in the British Open, where although he did not make the qualifying cut, it meant returning to the majors in an empty year in that category. Now, he has two more contests left before the start of the playoffs and he will evaluate what will be the most convenient to manage activity times and rest.

The man from Chaco scored 71 strokes (par) and, with a total of 270 (-14), was three strokes behind the champion, the North American Tony Finau (67, -4), who won out of a run and took advantage of Scott Piercy’s debacle , whose domain was eloquent until the 7th hole, but who chained errors -especially due to the triple bogey on the 14th- and squandered his chances in the tournament.

Grillo lived a day in which he alternated hope with dismay, to finally recover his spirits and end up very satisfied. A mountain of emotions from start to finish.

His start to the round was positive, as he was right on holes 3 and 6 to discount the difference he had with Piercy, who was already beginning to show signs that it would not be his day. But on the par 4 of the 7th hole, Grillo hit a bad second shot -the ball ended up in a rough behind the green- and ended up paying with a triple bogey, which seemed like it was going to end his chances.

It is the third victory for Tony Finau on the PGA Tour, after the Puerto Rico Open (2015/2016) and the Northern Trust Open (2020/2021)

However, the player trained in the Argentine Golf Association (AAG) rearranged himself around the turn and, with birdies at 10, 11 and 13, got back into the race, although this time close to Finau, who had taken control of the tournament with birdies at 14, 15 and 16, taking advantage of Piercy’s disaster. Even Grillo came within a shot of the lead, but the bogey on the 15th and not being able to take advantage of the short par 4 on the 16th left him with no chance of fighting for the title.

“It’s hard not to think about that hole and that 3-pointer I made there, but I think it wasn’t a bad call, it was just a bad execution. In any case, the important thing is that I came back and had the chance with the birdies on 10 and 11 and then with the big shot on 13. I have a lot of positive things to take from this week and transfer it to what is to come”, said the player from 29 years old, who had already finished third in this contest in 2020.

“When I got to the 14th tee I thought I had a good chance as Scott (Piercy) had opened the door for all of us, but Tony played his best golf and made it tough for us. I think I gave myself several chances, although I left all the short putts and in 18 I could have been second alone, but anxiety won me and I missed the puttGrillo commented.

“I’m happy with how I’m playing, but I still haven’t decided if I’m going to play next week or the next. These two weeks, with John Deere, show me that I can be there fighting again”closed the Argentine who has already achieved his place in the Playoffs of the FedEx Cup.

Also, Augusto Nunez -who secured the PGA Tour card- finished 2nd in Missouri, for the Korn Ferry Tour, while Mauricio Molina He finished 3rd in the Senior Open that was played in Gleneagles, Scotland, two strokes behind the champion, Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke.