Last month, PGA Tour Latinoamérica wrapped up its 2016 season on the Caribbean island of Aruba. The inaugural Aruba Cup, a team competition pitting the PGA Tour Latinoamérica against the Mackenzie Tour (PGA Tour Canada), featured 10 players from each side in a Ryder Cup format. Team Latinoamérica started strong, dominating the Four-Ball and Foursomes sessions to seize control of the Cup, and would take an 8.5–1.5 lead into the final day. Team Canada won the singles session by a 5.5–4.5 margin, but it was not enough to overcome the huge deficit.

The victory in Aruba was certainly something to celebrate, and not only for the players who hoisted the trophy. It was particularly satisfying for the leadership of PGA Tour Latinoamérica, which has overseen the development and growth of the tour throughout its first five years. To be able to compete with PGA Tour Canada, a much older and well-established professional tour, marks a milestone in the emergence of PGA Tour Latinoamérica. The tour’s president, Jack Warfield, noted that the tour has helped “bring awareness that there are really good golf courses and players in the region.” Now, as preparations for the 2017 season are underway, including a quartet of qualifying tournaments taking place this month, the tour looks to continue its rapid growth and deepen its impact on golf in Latin America.

John Slater (left) and Jack Warfield deliver the Roberto De Vicenzo Cup to Nate Lashley (center) at the PGA Tour LA Shell Championship, held at Melreese International Camp Club on December 4, 2016 in Miami, Florida.

PGA Tour Latinoamérica was established in 2012 as the premier men’s professional golf tour in Latin America. It replaced the now-defunct Tour de las Américas, which had been taken over by the PGA Tour the prior year. Today, the tour operates with the principal goal of developing elite players in Latin America, and while a few small intra-country tours exist, it remains by far the biggest tour body in the region. PGA Tour Latinoamérica conducted 11 events in its inaugural 2012 season, and has added events to its schedule every year since then. In 2016, the tour held 19 tournaments while visiting a total of 13 different countries.

PGA Tour Latinoamérica is a third-tier professional tour that feeds directly to the Web.com Tour, with the top five players on the Order of Merit standings (known as “Los Cinco”) earning full status on the Web.com Tour for the following year. Warfield highlights that there is a “clear pathway for a player to perform well and move up,” which has certainly helped the tour draw in a swath of top players looking to advance their professional golf careers. The graduates in recent years include standouts from Latin America, along with a number of American players. Of particular note are Ryan Blaum and Julián Etulain, who graduated in 2013 and 2014, respectively. Both players have debuted on the PGA Tour this season after finishing within “The 25” on the Web.com Tour in 2016.

Julin Etuláin of Argentina holds up his PGA Tour card after the final round of the WinCo Foods Portland Open on August 28, 2016 in North Plains, Oregon.

Since its inception, the functioning of the tour has been a collaborative effort among the PGA Tour, National Golf Federations, sponsors and many host clubs in the region. Warfield stated that they “encourage national opens to be a part of the tour.” Indeed, the national opens of countries such as Argentina, Colombia and Mexico are held as regular events on the PGA Tour Latinoamérica schedule. John Slater, the tour’s vice president of competition and administration, believes that these national opens are one of the most unique aspects of the tour, and recognizes that the events are “a big deal in these markets.” PGA Tour Latinoamérica partners with the golf associations of these countries to put on the event, and tour officials take charge of the competition aspects of each tournament.

However, the tour still faces the challenge of ensuring that each event remains financially viable and is generating stable revenues. Slater feels that “just getting a schedule together and getting all the partners to buy into the PGA Tour way of doing things” is the best indicator of the continued success of PGA Tour Latinoamérica. But the tour can’t succeed on its own, and Warfield says that “partners have done a great job at stepping up and marketing their events.” The support of a strong lineup of dedicated sponsors has enabled the tour to thrive and continue to provide a consistent, high-quality schedule.

In addition to the regular tour events, the Developmental Series was introduced in 2013 to provide players in the region with further opportunities to compete and ultimately earn status on the tour for the following season. The DEV Series features a number of events throughout the year, and then concludes at the “Grand Final” where the top-five finishers out of a field of 64 earn full status on PGA Tour Latinoamérica. Those placing between 6^th and 15^th at the finals earn conditional status.

Besides the DEV Series, players can also play their way to a membership on the tour through Q-School. While the PGA Tour discontinued its own Q-School in 2012, PGA Tour Latinoamérica offers four qualifying tournaments in January, along with one during the summer. The first tournament kicked off last week in Sebring, Florida, with qualifiers in Mexico, Colombia and Argentina to follow. By presenting players with these additional opportunities for growth and development, PGA Tour Latinoamérica is benefiting itself by creating a pipeline that is filled with up-and-coming talent, which inevitably results in stronger fields at regular tour events.

“We think it’s important for every event to have its own feel.”

Warfield has found that the tour has had a great impact on the region, largely because the golf industry was relatively undeveloped prior to its arrival. The PGA Tour is able to “move the needle faster” in Latin America, and he pointed to recent developments such as new course designs by top architects as an example. The tour visits many of the best courses in the region, and each week the players must adapt to new conditions. At every stop on the tour’s schedule, the tournament directors make a concerted effort to incorporate aspects of the local culture into the event. “We think it’s important for every event to have its own feel,” Slater said.

Despite the changes that are evident outside the ropes, he emphasized that “it is most important to us that when the ball goes in the air, the players know that the competition is going to be conducted in the same way every week.” He firmly believes that these playing conditions will help participants prepare for competition at the next level.

As the Aruba Cup clearly demonstrates, PGA Tour Latinoamérica is unique in large part because of the places they play. Warfield says that his favorite part of the job, aside from the interesting destinations, is the people, who are “very nice and phenomenally hospitable.” Slater, who left the Web.com Tour to join the PGA Tour’s venture in Latin America, echoes that sentiment. He appreciates the opportunity to “work with a dedicated and professional staff, form new friendships, and visit amazing places.” But, for him, the most satisfying aspect is “getting to help these very appreciative and respectful players realize their dreams.”

As the 2017 season rolls around, the tour will look to build on its success from previous years. It will continue to offer a platform upon which many of golf’s future stars can showcase their talents, progress in their golfing careers, and ultimately achieve their dream of playing on the PGA Tour.