BUENOS AIRES – Peru’s Patrick Sparks, Guatemala’s Gabriel Palacios and Colombia’s Manuel Merizalde opened the 10th edition of the Latin America Amateur Championship at six-under-par 66 to share the lead after the first round at Pilar Golf Club in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
On the same day that Lima Golf Club in Peru was announced as the host venue for the 2026 Latin America Amateur, Sparks got off to a strong start in this year’s Championship.
Sparks, who along with Palacios and Merizalde is looking to become the first player from his country to win the Latin America Amateur, notched seven birdies and an eagle, dropping shots on hole Nos. 3, 7 and 17. He missed the cut in his 2020 Championship debut and finished T-25 in 2024 at Santa Maria Golf Club in Panama City, Panama. “I played very good. I was a little surprised because I had a little lower expectations in this tournament for myself,” said Sparks. “But it’s always nice to get these surprises that happen every once in a while, so I’m just going to embrace it and enjoy it while I can.”
Palacios carded a five-under 31 on the back nine – including four consecutive birdies at Nos. 10-13 – to surge into a tie for the lead. With the 66, the 19-year-old sophomore at the University of Utah set the second-lowest mark by a Guatemalan player in the Latin America Amateur’s 10-year history. “We got grit,” said Palacios on Guatemalan players historically contending in the Championship. “We’re happy to be in such a big tournament. We rarely have a chance to compete for three majors.”
Merizalde, a reinstated amateur making his second appearance in the Championship, made seven birdies against just one bogey on Thursday morning, including three in his first four holes. The 45-year-old, ranked No. 119 in the World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR), finished T-29 at Grand Reserve Golf Club in Puerto Rico in 2023. “It was beautiful,” said Merizalde on his opening round. “When you go out to the course you never know what you’re going to shoot. I started with a birdie on 1 and then I was able to birdie 3, 4, and from then on, I was just trying to get it close to the hole. I’m very happy with the low round today.”
Argentine duo Franco Ricciardelli and Mateo Pulcini finished T-4, one shot back of the leaders. Both Ricciardelli – who is making his Championship debut after getting in as an alternate – and Pulcini matched Merizalde’s single-bogey round but managed one less birdie with six apiece, including his final two holes.
“My first thought was that I was very grateful,” said Ricciardelli on entering the field as an alternate. “I came here to have fun, play some golf and, in this case, have an opportunity on Sunday.”
Five players representing five different countries finished T-6 at four-under-par 68: Segundo Oliva Pinto of Argentina, Panama’s Omar Tejeira Jaen, Puerto Rico’s Jeronimo Esteve, Mexico’s Rodrigo Vazquez Colina and Colombia’s Jorge Andres Corchuelo Conde.
Esteve, who is making his ninth appearance, recorded the third ace in Championship history on the par-3 sixth. The 43-year-old has finished inside the top 10 in two of the last three editions of the Championship.
“It was a crazy round, started kind of weird,” said Esteve. “We got a bunch of bad breaks. My caddie reminded me that there was a lot of golf left and not to worry about it. Sure enough, we had a perfect number for the next shot, hit a good shot in there, landed short of the pin and it trickled in. That really kicked off the round.”
The 2022 LAAC champion Aaron Jarvis opened with a two-under-par 70 while Mexico’s Omar Morales, the highest-ranked player in the field at No. 12 in WAGR, carded a one-under-par 71 to sit five off the lead.
For more information on the Latin Amateur Championship, please visit LAACgolf.com and follow @LAAC_Golf on Facebook, Instagram, X, TikTok and YouTube.
About the Latin America Amateur ChampionshipIn 2014, the Masters Tournament, The R&A and the USGA announced the formation of the Latin America Amateur Championship in an effort to further develop amateur golf throughout the region, specifically in South America, Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean. The field is comprised annually of the top male amateurs in Latin America representing the 29 IOC-recognized countries and territories from this region that are current members of the International Golf Federation. The champion receives an invitation to compete in the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club and automatically qualifies for The Open and U.S. Open. The winner also receives full exemptions into The Amateur Championship, the U.S. Amateur Championship and any other USGA amateur championship for which he is eligible. Runner(s)-up will be exempt into the final stages of qualifying for The Open and U.S. Open.
