BY FERNANDO RODRIGUEZ
While many people may have never heard of the local Worldwide Technology Golf Championship, the tournament has been around since 2007 and returns this year with its traditional list of top-name golfers who are not household names but compete at the highest level. The local WWT Golf Championship stands as a pioneer and leader in the world of Mexican-hosted golf competitions. The event has distributed in its history more total prize money than any other golf tournament in Latin America. Legendary golfers and an outstanding course come together in Cabo each year to create a dramatic event with exciting results.
And while the Worldwide Technology Championship is committed to supporting local, national and international charities, this does not appear on their website. México’s pioneering PGA TOUR event donates significant funds and raises awareness for selected charities. In the event’s history, more than $3M has been generated for philanthropic causes.
Last year’s WWT tournament winner was American Russell Henley, who closed out the competition with a 1-under 70 for a four-shot victory at Mayakoba of the Riviera Maya near Cancun. Henley’s victory earned him $1.4M, beating fellow American Brian Harman, whose 2nd place winnings totalled USD 893,800. After that, five golfers were tied for third and each took home $375,560. Henley’s million-dollar victory was his lifetime best fourth win on the PGA Tour.
“I just tried to learn from my past and my screw-ups,” Henley said with a smile. “All those events I didn’t close out, they hurt. You never know if you’ll win another. To come down 18 with a four-shot lead was really cool.”
The 2021 event was also held at El Camaleón Golf Club on Mexico’s Riviera Maya of Quintana Roo, which has hosted the event for the past 16 years. Now the storied golf classic contested at the Tiger Woods-designed El Cardonal has moved to Cabo San Lucas and its own Tiger Woods-designed course at Diamante.
The Diamante desert oasis golf course is nestled along the stunning coastline of Cabo San Lucas. And one thing that shouldn’t be overlooked is the fact that the five golfers tied for 64th place in 2022, all earned $17,712 USD, which is a hefty payday in and of itself.
In 2007, Fred Funk claimed the title of the first-ever WWT Championship at Mayakoba, Riviera Mayan, with a birdie on the second hole of a sudden-death playoff against Jose Coceres. At age 50, Funk hit a 4-iron to six feet on the 180-yard, par-3 10th hole before making the birdie putt to outlast the Argentine.
With the win, Funk became just the second golfer in history to win on the PGA Tour after winning on the Champions Tour. The victory also made him the fifth-oldest champion in PGA history. By claiming the title at Mayakoba, Funk earned his eighth career PGA victory, taking home $3.5M!
Tickets are priced at USD 25 on Thursday and Friday, November 2 and 3 with Saturday/Sunday prices available at $30 and $35. A weeklong pass can be purchased for $100. Two children under 12 get in free with each paying adult. To order your tickets please visit https://tickets.wwtchampionship.com/e/world-wide-technology-championship/tickets.
