Kihei Akina Fires 64 to Share Mexico Open Lead at Vidanta Vallarta

BYU sophomore Kihei Akina chipped in for birdie on the final hole Friday to post a 7-under 64, moving to 11-under 131 for the tournament.

Kihei Akina, a 20-year-old sophomore at Brigham Young University, shot a 7-under 64 on Friday to reach 11-under 131 at the Mexico Open. Akina ended his second round at Vidanta Vallarta in a three-way tie for the lead alongside Matthieu Pavon and Adrien Dumont de Chassart. The performance marked Akina's ninth round of 67 or lower in his last four PGA Tour appearances.

Akina’s round was highlighted by an eagle on the 296-yard par-4 13th hole, where he drove the green with a mini-driver to set up a tap-in. He also recorded three birdies on the par-5 holes and concluded the day by chipping in for birdie on the 18th. This follows a tie for 17th place at a weather-shortened 54-hole event in Bermuda last week.

Ranked No. 9 in the world amateur golf ranking, Akina is currently pursuing a PGA Tour card through the PGA Tour University accelerated program for underclassmen. He earned one point for making the cut this week, bringing his total to 12 points. He requires 20 points to secure a tour card. His previous points were earned through a top-10 finish at the Bank of Utah Championship, made cuts since the Wyndham Championship, and a 1-1-1 record for the Walker Cup team at Lahinch.

Akina played the first two rounds in a group featuring 22-year-old Luke Clanton and Blades Brown. Brown, who turned professional as a high school junior, sits two strokes behind Akina after carding a 65 on Friday. Akina, originally from Oahu, Hawaii, moved to Alpine, Utah, at age 10 before joining the BYU golf program.