QUITO, Ecuador – With Stuart Macdonald winning the Diners Club Perú Open this past Sunday and Matthew Anderson claiming the 69th ECP Brazil Open a week earlier, Canadian players are on the rise in the early stages of the race for the Fortinet Cup.
Anderson, who followed his win with a share of the 18th spot in Peru, improved his point total to 696 to remain the PGA TOUR Americas No.1 player for the second consecutive week. Meanwhile, Macdonald rose from 22nd to third in the standings with a 613-point total.
“There’s a lot to play for every week and this is a big step forward,” said the 29-year-old Macdonald after his two-shot win Sunday at Los Inkas Golf Club, where he earned 500 Fortinet Cup points.
Through four events played this season, there are seven Canadian players currently inside the top 60 who would secure exempt status for the North America Swing that follows the six-event Latin America Swing. The other Canadians behind Anderson and Macdonald are Joey Savoie (18th), Lawren Rowe (35th), Thomas Giroux (39th), Jeevan Sihota (47th) and Jimmy Jones (50th).
“Golf Canada has done an unbelievable job developing all of our players. As you can see, every year we’ve got more and more players on the PGA TOUR, the Korn Ferry Tour, and this tour. There’s a lot of Canadian depth and a lot of that we can attribute to Golf Canada and its coaching staff,” added Macdonald about the current state of Canadian golf across the PGA TOUR-sanctioned tours.
The one player between the leading Canadians is Mexico’s José de Jesús Rodríguez, who tied for fifth in Peru and is second on Tour with a 657-point total. The 43-year-old veteran will not be playing this week’s event at Quito Tennis & Golf Club.
Aside from Macdonald, the other big Fortinet Cup move was made by Wisconsin native Samuel Anderson. Coming off a tie for sixth at the 69th ECP Brazil Open, the 25-year-old gave Macdonald a run for his money late on Sunday.
“(I) didn’t play my best, but I kind of hung in there and hit some awesome shots coming down the stretch, which was great,” said Anderson about his play Sunday in Lima. “I mean, I hit an awesome shot on 16 and I even gave myself a look on 17, which is a super tough par 3. I’m happy with how I played overall and I’m looking forward to Ecuador.”
The solo second finish earned Anderson 300 Fortinet Cup points and allowed him to move from 17th to fifth in the standings. Anderson was ranked 55th before his last two starts.
Finishing only a shot behind Anderson, Argentina’s Julián Etulain was the top Latin performer in Peru. His tie for third at Los Inkas Golf Club was his second third-place finish of the season. It allowed him to defend his position as No. 8 in the standings.
“I’m happy to keep adding points to my tally,” said the 35-year-old Etulain. “Hopefully, we can keep playing well these next two weeks to make the Latin Swing top 2 and secure a (Korn Ferry Tour) card for next year.”
The KIA Open, which is set to begin Thursday at the Quito Tennis & Golf Club in Quito, Ecuador, is the fifth event of the 2024 PGA TOUR Americas season and one of just two events left to play in the Latin America Swing.
Fortinet Cup Points List Top 10
Through 4 of 16 events
| Pos. | Player, Country | Points |
| 1 | Matthew Anderson (Canada) | 696 |
| 2 | José de Jesús Rodríguez (Mexico) | 657 |
| 3 | Stuart Macdonald (Canada) | 613 |
| 4 | Clay Feagler (U.S.) | 548 |
| 5 | Samuel Anderson (U.S.) | 425 |
| 6 | Conner Godsey (U.S.) | 408 |
| 7 | Jesús Montenegro (Argentina) | 380 |
| 8 | Julián Etulain (Argentina) | 366 |
| 9 | Davis Shore (U.S.) | 300 |
| 10 | Ollie Osborne (U.S.) | 265 |