QUITO, Ecuador—Mexico’s Armando Favela had a spectacular finish Friday, holing out from 96 yards for eagle at the par-5 17th and then sinking a 20-footer for birdie at the last to card a 65. That moved him to 9-under 135 at the 2023 Kia Open’s halfway mark. An hour and a half later, playing in the last group that finished on 18, Argentina’s Franco Romero carded a 67 to match Favela’s total and make it a two-way tie for the lead heading into the weekend of the eighth event of the 2022-23 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica season.

The co-leaders finished the day two shots ahead of Argentina’s Matías Simaski, France’s Jeremy Gandon and the U.S. duo of Dalan Refioglu and Garrett Reband. Ten other players made it into a tie for the seventh spot at 6-under for the week, including last Sunday’s Diners Club Perú Open winner Marcos Montenegro, who fired a 66, New Zealand’s Charlie Hillier, who bounced back from an opening 74 with a low-of-the-day 64, and Ecuador’s own Juan Moncayo, who made it back-to-back 69s. Moncayo was the only local player to make the cut, which came at 2-under 142.

“I couldn’t be happier. I have played great the last two days. Today’s final stretch was unbelievable, as I holed out from 96 yards for an eagle on 17, and then I made a 20-footer on 18 that will make tonight’s dinner taste really well,” said Favela, a 37-year old from Tijuana who is making his 95th career PGA TOUR Latinoamérica start.

Favela’s numbers for the week are rock solid. He has only missed two fairways in two days, and he has yet to make a bogey. He is ecstatic about his play, especially with his wedges, but that was not the case at the beginning of the week.

Frustrated with his swing during Tuesday’s practice round, he sought advice from his coach and his fellow Tour players from Mexico. “There were some minor details related to my setup. The difference from Tuesday to Wednesday was night and day,” said the Loyola University-Chicago alum of the adjustments that got him back on track.

“I believe that in golf, 90 percent of your mistakes begin way before you swing your club. Fortunately, I was able to put aside the uncertainty of where the ball was going to go, and these are the results,” he added, pleased and confident as he heads into the weekend.

Coming off a tie for 37th in Peru and inside this week’s field thanks to a sponsor’s exemption, Romero made a late charge. At 1-under for the day through nine holes, he sank a 15-footer for birdie that ignited a stretch of five birdies in seven holes. At 10-under for the tournament after going birdie-birdie-birdie between 14 and 16, he missed on his chance to hold the outright lead by bogeying the par-5 17th.

“I played really well, very solid from tee to green. Definitely, the key today was the putter. I have been working hard on it lately, and it’s restoring the confidence that I needed,” said the 28-year-old Romero, a native of Rosario, Argentina, who has made 82 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica starts in his career.

Making the locals proud, Moncayo moved within one of the lead with six holes to play but had two bogeys coming in for a bitter closing stretch. He hit the ball in the water on No. 6, his 15th hole of the day, and then three-putted from six feet at the par-5 No. 8.

“It was a tough day. I didn’t strike the ball that well. I believe I battled pretty well under those circumstances. I wish I hadn’t finished the way I did, but we are at 6-under, and we’ll keep fighting this weekend,” said the 27-year-old, who earned a sponsor exemption into this tournament. A year ago, he tied for 34th here.

Key Information

The cut came at 1-under 142, with 60 players making it to the weekend.

2022-23 PGA TOUR Latinoamérica Player Benefits

After struggling to shoot 1-over 73 and finish the day tied for 81st Thursday, Totalplay Cup leader Conner Godsey carded a 4-under 68 to move into a tie for 40th, at 3-under for the week. The following are the scores and positions for the nine players inside the Totalplay
Cup top-10 competing here this week:

Aside from Conner Godsey, who won this tournament in 2021, the only other past champion in this week’s field is Ricardo Celia of Colombia, who claimed the title in 2015. Celia followed an opening 72 with a 71 to miss the cut by one stroke.

With Juan Moncayo in a tie for seventh as the only local player to make the cut, here is the complete list of Ecuador natives playing this week and how they performed.

Second-Round Weather: Partially cloudy. High of 67. Wind NE at 6-21 mph.