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Julio Cesar Valdera Morales is a Newsweek contributor based in Spain. His focus is golf as well as politics and economics. Julio has been with Newsweek since February, 2025 and previously practiced law. Julio earned his Masters Degree at the University of Havana. You can get in touch with Julio by emailing j.morales@newsweek.com.
Contributing Sports Writer
Rising star Blades Brown made good use of his sponsor's exemption to play in the Mexico Open at VidantaWorld. The 17-year-old made the cut by two strokes, the first of his professional career on the circuit, but that is not the only satisfaction he took from his stay in Mexico.
Brown is taking advantage of his trip to Puerto Vallarta to practice the Spanish he learned during his high school years, which ended a few months ago.
"I'm super happy to come down here to Mexico and speak some Spanish," Brown told the media after his second round performance. "I took Spanish four years in high school, so I'm really happy I chose that over Latin. I'm having so much fun here at the resort and I can't wait for the next two days."
The Nashville native also described his emotions playing his first weekend as a professional. He said the par he made on the 17th hole was especially meaningful.
"I'm so relieved that I was able to make the weekend," he said. "I had about a nine footer for par on hole 17 and thankfully that dropped. I'm super thankful to be here. Playing golf on a golf course like this, it's hard to beat."
Blades Brown carded five birdies and two bogeys for a 3-under-par 66 in the first round of the Mexico Open. The second round tested his nerves, as after three birdies and no bogeys through hole 6, he made two bogeys and no birdies over the next 10 holes, putting him in serious danger of missing the cut. He finally closed the day with a birdie on 18 to make the cut by two strokes (5 under after 36 holes).
This is the second PGA Tour event Brown has played this season. He missed the cut by three shots in his previous event (The American Express).
Brown made a name for himself in recent years as one of the top junior players in the country. He received a sponsor's exemption to play in the 2024 Myrtle Beach Classic, where he made history by making the cut and tying for 26th place at 10-under par.
After graduating from high school last summer, Brown decided to skip college and jump right into his professional career. It's a move that other players like Rory McIlroy and Akshay Bhatia have made successfully.
More Golf: PGA Tour's Joel Dahmen Drains 95-Footer to Jump Above Mexico Open Cut Line
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