Cristobal Del Solar of Chile set the Korn Ferry Tour record Thursday with a 13-under 57 at the Astara Golf Championship, the lowest round in a PGA Tour-sanctioned event and tying the record on tours that are part of the Official World Golf Rankings .
The 30-year-old, ranked 259th in the world, played such a flawless round on Bogota Country Club’s Pacos Course that he made par on his final three holes and still shot a 57. He made two eagles, one of them on the 330-yard ninth hole to go out in eight-under 27, tying the Korn Ferry Tour nine-hole record.
Del Solar was helped by the circumstances. The Pacos course is only 6,254 yards long and is approximately 8,500 feet above sea level, allowing the ball to fly further. Rainy conditions in the days leading up to the tournament meant that players were allowed to pick up, clean and place golf balls according to the preferred rule.
“It was a very short course, I mean really short,” Del Solar said after his lap. “Many holes were driveable; I wouldn’t say it’s driveable, but within 20 yards of the green. I wouldn’t necessarily get on the green, but I was around it. The course was definitely set up to get a low score.
“When you take a course like this, you don’t think, ‘I’m going to shoot 57.’ You just go out there and do your best and hope it’s a really low score. You still have to do it, of course.”
Del Solar broke Stephan Jaegerm’s previous Korn Ferry record of 58, set during the first round of the Ellie Mae Classic in 2016. David Carey was the first player with a 57, which he carded at the Cervino Open in the Alps of 2019 Tour.
Del Solar became the 53rd player with a sub-60 round on tours around the world – including the LPGA Tour, PGA Tour Champions and LIV Golf – since Al Geiberger shot 59 for the first time in the 1977 Memphis Classic.
Last week Joaquin Niemann shot 59 at LIV Golf Mayakoba. Golf has had at least one round under 60 every year since 2013.
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Del Solar wasn’t the only player to take advantage of the conditions and he only had a four-shot lead despite his record-breaking round.
“Today is the first day of the tournament,” he said. ‘Tomorrow I have to play again. Hopefully I’ll have some great news on Sunday too. Hopefully I will celebrate on Sunday too.”