Alvaro Ortiz is in the running to be low amateur at The Masters
Who is Alvaro Ortiz?
Alvaro Ortiz is the first Mexican to compete at The Masters since Victor Regalado in 1979.
Ortiz qualified for the tournament by winning the Latin America Amateur Championship (LAAC), which was launched in 2015 by The Masters Tournament, The R&A and the USGA as a way of promoting the game in the region.
The 23-year-old narrowly missed out on three previous occasions in the LAAC, losing in a play-off, finishing runner up, and posting a third.
He finally triumphed in January, winning by two shots at the Pete Dye-designed Teeth of the Dog course in the Dominican Republic.
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When asked what it meant to make the cut at Augusta, the Mexican said: “Oh, man, it means the world. I came out here with a mentality of, I want the Green Jacket and everything, but at some point in the round today I thought it was getting out of hand and I thought I was losing my game and I wasn't going to be able to make the cut.
“But I found something on 14 and gladly I hit that great shot on 14 and 15 and on 18 and that 4‑under in the last five holes really helped me to get some confidence going for the weekend.”
The highlight of Ortiz’s 2nd round came when he eagled the 15th. “I was just happy that I found it when I needed it,” he said. “I'm looking forward to the weekend.”
Ortiz comes from a golfing family, with his older brother Carlos being named the 2014 Web.com Tour player of the year.
Alvaro graduated from the University of Arkansas last year with a degree in International Business and represented Mexico in the Eisenhower Trophy in 2016 and 2018.
The last Mexican amateur to compete at Augusta was Juan Antonio Estrada, who played three times in the 1960s.
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