After Last Year’s Close Call, Mateo Fernández de Oliveira Takes Command of LAAC

The current 2023 Latin America Amateur Championship leader missed last year’s playoff by one shot.

At the 2022 Latin America Amateur Championship, Argentina’s Mateo Fernández de Oliveira started the final round seven strokes back, but he found himself standing over a pivotal putt on the 18th green. Sink the putt and Fernández de Oliveira would have made it into a playoff for the LAAC title, which comes with invitations to the Masters, the British Open and this year, the U.S. Open. 

The putt didn’t drop for Fernández de Oliveira at last year’s championship, but they sure are this time around. The University of Arkansas senior fired off a bogey-free 63 on Saturday at Grand Reserve Golf Club to take a commanding four-shot lead heading into tomorrow’s final round. 

He now stands at 18-under par (198), a number that shattered the previous 54-hole scoring record of 206, set by Matías Dominguez in 2015. Fernández de Oliveira’s third round score of 63 also tied Joaquin Niemann for the LAAC’s lowest round, which he set back in ’18. 

The record-setting round for the 22-year-old included a stretch of three birdies in the row on the front nine and five in a row on the back. One more birdie on the 18th capped off Fernández de Oliveira’s stellar day. 

“I was pretty much in control of everything that was going on, so it was a great round,” Fernández de Oliveira said. “But I don’t want to feel like that because we have one more round to go tomorrow.”

Fernández de Oliveira knows what’s at stake for Sunday’s final round. Even though he’ll be playing with a comfortable cushion—with Mexico’s Luis Carrera sitting a full four strokes behind—the Argentinian assumes he’ll be feeling some nerves. 

“I will try to make it as a normal Sunday,” Fernández de Oliveira said. “I know it will not be like that. Probably I will have a hard time sleeping, eating dinner as well eating breakfast but I will just try to be with friends and enjoy the place.”