Myles Creighton is poised to take the next step of his career.
The product of Digby, N.S., is headed into the Bupa Tour Championship on Thursday atop the Totalplay Cup rankings, the points list for the Latinoamerica Tour.
Sitting at 1,094 points, 149 more than American Walker Lee, Creighton is in an ideal position to win the golf circuit's overall title.
Creighton has already locked up a top-five spot on the tour and therefore has status on the second-tier Korn Ferry Tour next year, but to win it all will have even more benefits.
"To finish first would be awesome just in itself," said Creighton from PGA Riviera Maya in Tulum, Mexico. "To finish first and then to have guaranteed entry into every Korn Ferry event next year is a huge bonus.
"Just to know you can make your schedule and to be able to play every event and not have to worry about it would just be a huge bonus."
Creighton started the 13-tournament Latinoamerica season strong with a tie for third at the 116 Visa Argentina Open on Dec. 4 and backed that up with another T3 at the Termas de Rio Hondo Invitational on March 19.
His last three events have had particularly strong showings, however, with a tie for seventh at the Colombia Classic on May 28, a victory at the Inter Rapidisimo Golf Championship on June 4, and a tie for fourth at the Jalisco Open on June 25.
"In years past, I've been very consistent as well, I just have never gotten over the hump and gotten a win," said Creighton, speaking on how just one shot can make the difference to a season. "The week before I won, I think I was 15th on the points list and finished tied for seventh but went to 16th on the points.
"Then the next week, I played very similar, I was just able to add a couple more shots and get the win. I went from moving back a spot to being first on the points list. That's just how these tours can work."
If Creighton does win the Latinoamerica Tour, he'll be the last champion in the circuit's history. It's set to merge with the PGA Tour Canada to become the PGA Tour Americas in 2024.
That new third-tier tour will have a total of 16 events, six in Latin America, two in the United States and eight in Canada. It will be a feeder into the Korn Ferry Tour, just like the Latinoamerica Tour and the PGA Tour Canada .
"This is my third season playing down here and I've always thought that this tour suited my game," said Creighton. "It's a lot of different kinds of conditions and you have to be able to adapt and whatnot.
"It would be cool to be able to (be the final champion) after putting that much time and effort down here. It'd be cool to finish it off."
PGA TOUR — Taylor Pendrith of Richmond Hill, Ont., returns to the Rocket Mortgage Classic at Detroit Golf Club where he tied for second last year. He's ranked 120th on the FedEx Cup standings. Adam Svensson (38th) of Surrey, B.C., Adam Hadwin (51st) of Abbotsford, B.C., and Michael Gligic (203rd) of Burlington, Ont., are also in the field.
KORN FERRY TOUR — Ben Silverman of Thornhill, Ont., is the lone Canadian entered in the Memorial Health Championship at Panther Creek Country Club in Springfield, Ill. Silverman is No. 3 on the second-tier tour's points list after he tied for 11th at last week's Compliance Solutions Championship.
PGA TOUR CANADA — Étienne Papineau of Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Que., remains the top-ranked player on the PGA Tour Canada heading into this week's ATB Classic at Northern Bear in Strathcona County, Alta. He's ranked No. 1 in the Fortinet Cup standings after winning the Royal Beach Victoria Open on June 18 and tying for 37th at last week's Elk Ridge Saskatchewan Open.
DP WORLD TOUR — Aaron Cockerill of Stony Mountain, Man., is in the field at the Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo. That event is being held at The Belfry, Sutton Coldfield, England. Cockerill is No. 37 on the European-based DP World Tour.
CHAMPIONS TOUR — Calgary's Stephen Ames is second overall in the Champions Tour's money list heading into the U.S. Senior Open Championship. Mike Weir of Brights Grove, Ont., and Alan McLean of London, Ont., are also in the field. Weir is 32nd in the Schwab Cup rankings and McLean is No. 115.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 28, 2023.
John Chidley-Hill, The Canadian Press
