José de Jesús Rodríguez leads heading into final round at Totalplay Championship

José de Jesús Rodríguez took sole possession of the lead at the Totalplay Championship at Atlas Country Club after 54 holes. He holds a one-stroke lead over Derek Hitchner and Joey Vrzich. The Pepperdine alums are tied for second at 12-under par. Two players are tied for fourth.

Rodríguez rode a bogey-free front nine and an eagle on No. 15 to a 4-under 67. The Irapuato, Mexico, native has carded eight consecutive sub-70 rounds at Atlas Country Club dating back to the final round of the 2022 Jalisco Open GDL, where he claimed the first of back-to-back victories at the event.

Rodríguez's history at Atlas Country dates back to 2010 when he shot a 62 in a Mexican Tour event to set the course record. Rodríguez’s course record had gone unmatched until Matthew Anderson carded a 9-under 62 on Thursday. Rodriguez is looking to claim his third PGA TOUR-sanctioned win at Atlas Country Club this weekend.

Final-round tee times begin at 7:55 a.m. and will run until 11:35 a.m. MT off the No. 1 tee on Sunday.

About José de Jesús Rodríguez (1st/-13)

Age: 43
Birthplace: Irapuato, Mexico
Residence: Irapuato, Mexico
College: N/A
Fortinet Cup (start of week): T31

• Nicknamed “El Camarón” (Shrimp) when he was growing up
• His older brother, Rosendo Rodríguez, is his golf coach
• Is the third eldest of eight siblings in his family. Rodríguez has three brothers and four sisters
• Dropped out of school at the age of 12 to caddy full-time to help provide for his family
• Was the winningest player in PGA TOUR Latinoamerica history with six career wins on the circuit
• Favorite professional team is UNAM Pumas from the Mexican Football League
• Explains that every time he wins a tournament, the first thing he does is thank heaven for it

Competition Notes

Course Setup: Par 71 / 7,279 yards; Cumulative average: 70.560
Weather: Sunny with a high of 90 degrees. Wind from the WSW at 1-11 mph with gusts up to 23 mph.

• Jaime Lopez Rivarola (T6/-10) shot the lowest round of the day, carding a 6-under 65
• Thomas Giroux (T4/-11) and Matthew Anderson (T6/-10) are the leading Canadians in the field
• Four countries are represented in the top five: United States (2), Canada (1), Mexico (1) and Argentina (1)
• Mexico’s Rodríguez (1st/-13) and Jesus Montenegro of Argentina (T4/-11) are the leading Latins in the field. They lead a total of 18 Latin players who made the cut
• Hole 9 – the 417-yard par 4 – was the most challenging hole at Atlas Country Club; averaging a cumulative score of +.330. Hole 15 – the 515-yard par 5 – has carded 182 birdies and 14 eagles to make it the lowest scoring average at -.530
• Alan Wagner (T20/-6) and Alejandro Madariaga (T44/-3) are the two Monday Qualifiers to make the cut