Toto Gana in 3-way tie for lead at Latin America Amateur

By AP
Published

SANTIAGO, Chile (AP) Defending champion Toto Gana opened with a 3-under 68 in his home country and shared the lead Saturday after the opening round of the Latin America Amateur Championship.

Gana, the 20-year-old from Chile who attends Lynn University in Florida, won last year in Panama City to earn a spot in the Masters.

He made six birdies against three bogeys at Prince of Wales Country Club and was tied with Pablo Torres of Colombia and Mark Montenegro of Argentina. Montenegro led most of the opening round until dropping three shots over his final four holes.

Among those one shot behind was Alvaro Ortiz, who lost in the three-man playoff a year ago.

Joaquin Niemann of Chile, the No. 1 amateur in the world, opened with a 74.