Local hero Cristobal Del Solar returns for Astara Chile Classic

Cristobal Del Solar will stay at his brother’s house for this week’s Astara Chile Classic presented by Scotiabank, his home country’s Korn Ferry Tour event. He’ll play in front of family, friends and fans as he aims to take a step toward his dream of playing on the PGA TOUR.

He’ll appreciate the scene indeed, but when it comes to his focus inside the ropes, he intends to simply let his clubs do the talking.

“Before maybe there were too many things that kept me from a mindset of just playing the sport, so I’m going to focus like I’m not actually in my country,” Del Solar said with a laugh. “I’m just staying within my circle and doing the same things like on a weekly basis and (will) see how the week goes.”

The Chilean returns home for the Astara Chile Classic on the heels of two important celebratory pillars. The first was his incredible 13-under 57 at the Astara Golf Championship presented by Mastercard last month in Bogota, the lowest score ever recorded in a PGA TOUR-sanctioned event.

He then made his first career PGA TOUR cut at the Mexico Open at Vidanta, after opening with a tidy 65. He had originally planned to take that week off, but he was thrilled to be able to get the call to tee it up at Vidanta. He was happy to get in and even happier with the way he performed.

“It was definitely better than sitting at home,” Del Solar said with a laugh. “I was just going to be practicing, and what better way to practice than to play on the PGA TOUR.”

Del Solar finished 52nd on last year’s Korn Ferry Tour Points List on the strength of four top-10 finishes. Through five Korn Ferry Tour events this season, he’s No. 11 on the season-long standings, already with three top-10s. He points to plenty of consistency with his practice for why he’s had some early-season success.

Del Solar said he’s been working with the same coaches for more than a half-decade and has been happy with the way his golf swing has progressed and evolved. He’s got bigger and stronger. The mental side of his game has improved. He’s putting in the work and the results are showing.

“It’s not just one thing that’s been going good, it’s just consistency overall. We’ve been doing the same drills for a long time and keeping it simple,” he said. “I’ve been doing this for six years and it’s long enough to know what you like and don’t like.”

Part of the comfort and consistency comes from Del Solar turning 30 at the end of last year. While there have been lots of stars born directly from the PGA TOUR University program or breakthrough winners in their early 20s, Del Solar knows he’s still in the infancy of his professional golf career.

“I want to do this for a long time – until I’m over 50 – so if you put it in perspective … six years of my professional career, it’s nothing for the time I want to do it. That’s the fun part. If I want to do it over 50 and play on (PGA TOUR Champions) later on, it’s going to be over a 30-year career,” Del Solar said. “Golf is evolving. Young guys are coming out and they’re really good. We’ve got to keep up, obviously, but at the same time I want to do this for a long time. I feel like I’m just starting.”

Now that Del Solar has gotten off to such a great start to his 2024 campaign, all he can hope is for it to continue. Everyone on the Korn Ferry Tour, he admits, has the lone goal of earning a PGA TOUR card. It’s “a given,” he said. But as far as process goals go, he’s not paying much attention to anything other than staying focused on the present.

“I just focus every week and try to be consistent,” he said. “I look at every week and try to do the best I can.”

And this week in Chile, that means playing his best in front of his family and his home country. This week is a special one for Del Solar, and now he’s hoping for a special result.