Ben Griffin, who finished in the top five at the 2026 Mexico Open, pictured at the 2025 Ryder Cup, a file photo. Photo by Bryan Berlin (Berlination), via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Andrew Novak closed out a five-stroke win at the VidantaWorld Mexico Open, holding off a late charge from Doug Ghim to claim his first individual PGA Tour title.
Andrew Novak won the 2026 VidantaWorld Mexico Open, the PGA Tour's FedExCup Fall stop at Vidanta Vallarta in Nuevo Vallarta, Mexico, finishing at 25-under 259, a tournament record. He won by five strokes, and his $1,080,000 share came out of the event's $6 million purse, according to the PGA Tour. It's his first individual PGA Tour title.
Novak opened with a 67, then pulled away with a 61 on Friday and a 62 on Saturday, the two rounds that built his cushion heading into the weekend's close and left him at 23-under through 54 holes. Stacking 19-under across those middle 36 holes is what turned the week into a runaway rather than a close finish.
Novak carried a six-stroke lead into the final round, according to AFP. The 69 that closed it out started slowly, with pars giving way to a bogey at the par-4 10th. He answered with three straight birdies at 12, 13 and 14, the 14th from 44 feet (13.4m), a stretch that put the result out of reach. He finished at 25-under 259, still a tournament record, and won by five strokes.
Doug Ghim played in the final group and was the closest chaser late, but a double bogey at the 18th dropped him to 18-under, tied for sixth. Matthieu Pavon started Sunday in second place, six strokes back, and fell away from there.
Steven Fisk and Kristoffer Ventura, of Norway, both closed with 63 to tie for second at 20-under 264, five strokes behind Novak. Mackenzie Hughes and Ben Griffin tied for fourth at 19-under. Griffin, Novak's partner in the 2025 Zurich Classic win, shot 67 on Sunday.
The win is Novak's first individual title on the PGA Tour. His only previous tour win came in the 2025 Zurich Classic of New Orleans, a team event he won alongside Ben Griffin by one stroke. "I loved Zurich and everything about that tournament. That's so fun. But it is nice to have one by myself, too. This is one I've been working for for a while," Novak said after the round, according to AP. The Mexico Open now gives him a solo line on the tour's win list to go with that team title.
The result carried FedExCup Fall weight beyond the trophy. The top 100 in the final FedExCup Fall standings keep full cards for the 2027 season. Ventura's runner-up finish moved him from No. 108 to No. 76, locking up his card. Hughes moved from No. 118 to No. 101 with three events left on the Fall schedule.
Sources: PGA Tour's Mexico Open past results, AFP via France 24, Golf Channel's recap, AP via CBS Sports, Yahoo Sports, PGA Tour's 2025 Zurich Classic recap.
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