| Mito Pereira | |
|---|---|
 Pereira at the2024 Summer Olympics | |
| Personal information | |
| Full name | Guillermo Pereira Hinke |
| Nickname | Mito |
| Born | (1995-03-31)31 March 1995 (age 30) Santiago, Chile |
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm)[1] |
| Weight | 196 lb (89 kg)[1] |
| Sporting nationality |  Chile |
| Residence | Jupiter, Florida, U.S. |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Career | |
| College | Texas Tech University |
| Turned professional | 2015 |
| Former tours | LIV Golf PGA Tour Korn Ferry Tour PGA Tour Latinoamérica |
| Professional wins | 13 |
| Highestranking | 41 (9 October 2022)[2] (as of 8 February 2026) |
| Number of wins by tour | |
| Korn Ferry Tour | 3 |
| Other | 10 |
| Best results in major championships | |
| Masters Tournament | T43: 2023 |
| PGA Championship | T3:2022 |
| U.S. Open | CUT: 2019, 2022, 2023 |
| The Open Championship | CUT: 2022 |
Medal record | |
Guillermo "Mito"Pereira Hinke (born 31 March 1995) is a Chilean formerprofessional golfer who played on thePGA Tour and theLIV Golf League. He was best known for contending at the2022 PGA Championship, where he made double bogey on the final hole to finish one shot outside of a playoff.[3]
A talented amateur golfer, Pereira was recruited to play forTexas Tech University. He spent one year with theTexas Tech Red Raiders before turning professional in 2015. He subsequently played onPGA Tour Latinoamérica and theKorn Ferry Tour, earning status on the PGA Tour in 2021 via athree-win promotion. Pereira left the PGA Tour to join LIV Golf in 2023. He retired from professional golf in 2025 at the age of 30.
Pereira was born on 31 March 1995 inSantiago, Chile,[1] to Sibylle Hinke and Guillermo Pereira.[4] He had two siblings.[5] Pereira hasGerman ancestry through his mother.[4] In Spanish,Mito means "myth". Pereira's nickname is unrelated to this definition and instead is a derivation of "Guillermito", an affectionate name which his mother gave to him.[6]
Pereira's father was a recreational golfer and introduced his son to the game. Pereira stated that he started with plastic clubs aged "two or three years old" and played in his first tournament at age six.[7] He grew up nearJoaquín Niemann and they began playing golf together as children. Niemann viewed Pereira, who was a few years older, as an inspiration. They both were coached by Eduardo Miquel, who had previously coached other golfers such asBenjamín Alvarado andPaz Echeverría.[4]
On the advice of the family of Chilean tennis playerHans Gildemeister, Pereira began visiting the United States at age eight to compete in tournaments. He performed well and became known as a top prospect.[4] He finished runner-up in the boys' 10–11 division at the 2006 Optimist International Junior Golf Championship, and won the boys' 12–13 division in 2008.[8][9] He also was runner-up at theJunior Open Championship in 2010.[9]
Aged 14, Pereira received an assessment at theDavid Leadbetter Golf Academy (part of theIMG Academy). He was evaluated to have the potential as a top 30 player in the world and was offered a scholarship.[4] Pereira subsequently moved toFlorida to enroll at IMG Academy. Six months later, he left the academy and took a hiatus from golf, which lasted two years. He recalled in 2022: "I got tired of it. I quit and just played other sports for a while – dirt bike, soccer and tennis. One day, I wanted to play golf again and I came back. It’s that simple."[10] Due to his lengthy layoff, Pereira suffered due to back injuries once he began playing golf again.[11]
In 2012, Pereira's father developed a serious illness, which caused Pereira to consider retiring from golf. The family was no longer able to afford membership at the golf club where Pereira practiced, but the club intervened and offered him free membership.[9] In September 2013, Pereira won the Abierto Las Brisas de Chicureo, a professional tournament on the Chilean Tour.[9] He shot 6-under 210 to win by one stroke.[12] Following this victory, he began to receive scholarship offers from American universities.[9] Pereira moved to 5th in theWorld Amateur Golf Ranking in August 2014.[13]
Pereira was recruited to play forTexas Tech University beginning in fall 2014.Greg Sands, head coach of theTexas Tech Red Raiders golf team, offered him a scholarship despite only seeing him play a few times. Fellow ChileanMatías Domínguez helped to convince Pereira to pick Texas Tech.[14] Pereira shot a 9-under 63 at the Tavistock Collegiate Invitational in October 2014.[14] He finished runner-up at the Royal Oaks Intercollegiate the following week.[15] Pereira tied for eighth at theBig 12 Championships in April 2015 atSouthern Hills Country Club, nine strokes behind the winnerScottie Scheffler.[16][17] Pereira ended his freshman year at Texas Tech ranked 68th in the Golfweek/Sagarin College Rankings and 118th in the World Amateur Golf Ranking. He announced in July 2015 that he had decided to leave university and turn professional.[18]
After leaving Texas Tech University, Pereira returned to Chile and began training again with Eduardo Miquel.[9] Pereira received an invite to theChile Open in October 2015. He finished tied-fourth and was the low Chilean. The tournament was part of the2015 PGA Tour Latinoamérica schedule and the result secured him an exemption to the next event on the schedule, theMundo Maya Open, where he finished tied-ninth.[9]
During the2016 PGA Tour Latinoamérica season, Pereira won theRoberto De Vicenzo Punta del Este Open Copa NEC. In addition to his victory, he had two runner-up finishes and four further top-10s in 18 starts. He ended the season ranked No. 3 on the Order of Merit, earning promotion to the2017 Web.com Tour, where his best finish was a tie for third at theNashville Golf Open.[1]
At the2019 U.S. Open, he qualified for his first major, but did not make the cut. At the2019 Pan American Games, Pereira won the bronze medal in themen's individual competition.[19]
On the2020–21 Korn Ferry Tour, he won theCountry Club de Bogotá Championship in February 2020. With back to back victories at theRex Hospital Open andBMW Charity Pro-Am in June 2021, he earned an instant promotion to thePGA Tour. He became just the 12th player in the developmental tour's 32-year history to earn the automatic three-win promotion, and the first sinceWesley Bryan in 2016.[20] In August 2021, Pereira finished in a tie for 3rd place at theOlympic Games. He lost in a 7-man playoff for the bronze medal.[21]
At the2022 PGA Championship, he entered the final round with a three-shot lead overWill Zalatoris andMatt Fitzpatrick, at 9-under-par. However, he struggled throughout the day, and reached the par-4 18th hole atSouthern Hills at 6-under, with a one stroke lead over Zalatoris andJustin Thomas. Having missed his birdie putt at 17 by mere inches, he was aggressive off the tee, ultimately finding the right hand side creek, leading to a double bogey. He ended up tied for third place, as Thomas defeated Zalatoris in a playoff. Pereira was the third player over the previous 20 years to double-bogey the 72nd hole in a major and finish one shot out of a playoff;Phil Mickelson andColin Montgomerie both did it at the2006 U.S. Open.[22]
Pereira qualified for the International team at the2022 Presidents Cup; he played three matches, tying one and losing two.[23]
In February 2023, it was announced that Pereira joinedLIV Golf and will participate as a team member of Torque GC, alongside team captain and fellow ChileanJoaquín Niemann.[24] Pereira finished runner-up atLIV Golf Greenbrier in August 2023.[25] He also three other top-5 finishes and placed at No. 8 in the2023 LIV Golf League seasonal rankings.[3]
Pereira narrowly avoided relegation during the2024 LIV Golf League season, finishing at No. 47 in the rankings.[26] In the2025 LIV Golf League season, he finished No. 51,[3] outside the top-48 cutoff, and was relegated.[27] Pereira made over US$11.5 million during his three seasons on LIV Golf.[28]
In December 2025, Pereira announced his retirement from professional golf.[29] He stated: "I spent many years living away from home, in another country, countless weeks in hotels and airports. Now, the time has come to pause. Chile is my place in the world, and my family is my reason for being."[30]
In December 2021, Pereira married Antonia Prida, whom he had known since childhood.[31][32] They had their first child in 2024.[33]
Pereira appeared in the sports documentary seriesFull Swing, which premiered on Netflix on February 15, 2023.[34]
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9 Feb2020 | Country Club de Bogotá Championship | −20 (65-66-68-64=263) | 2 strokes |  Ben Kohles |
| 2 | 6 Jun2021 | Rex Hospital Open | −21 (62-67-67-67=263) | Playoff |  Stephan Jäger |
| 3 | 13 Jun 2021 | BMW Charity Pro-Am | −27 (65-63-66-64=258) | 4 strokes | Justin Lower |
Korn Ferry Tour playoff record (1–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponent(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2021 | Huntsville Championship |  Paul Barjon,Billy Kennerly | Barjon won with eagle on third extra hole |
| 2 | 2021 | Rex Hospital Open | Stephan Jäger | Won with birdie on first extra hole |
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 Oct2016 | Roberto De Vicenzo Punta del Este Open Copa NEC | −16 (64-67-70-63=264) | 5 strokes | Tom Whitney |
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 Nov2018 | Andrés Romero Invitational | −11 (71-66-68=205) | 2 strokes |  Paulo Pinto |
| No. | Date | Tournament | Winning score | Margin of victory | Runner(s)-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 Sep 2013 | Abierto Las Brisas de Chicureo (as an amateur) | −6 (70-70-70=210) | 1 stroke | Nicolás Geyger,Cristián León |
| 2 | 13 Sep 2015 | Abierto de Marina Golf Rapel | −9 (70-65=135) | 4 strokes | Lucas Morandé |
| 3 | 19 Dec 2015 | Abierto del Club de Polo | −9 (70-68-69=207) | 4 strokes | Juan Cerda |
| 4 | 10 Jan 2016 | Abierto de Cachagua | −12 (65-68-71=204) | 4 strokes | Juan Cerda,Gabriel Morgan-Birke |
| 5 | 26 Nov 2017 | Abierto Hacienda Chicureo | −13 (72-66-65=203) | 5 strokes | Gustavo Silva |
| 6 | 6 Jan 2019 | Abierto de Cachagua (2) | −23 (64-67-62=193) | 7 strokes | Joaquín Niemann |
| 7 | 19 Jan 2019 | Abierto Marbella | −24 (64-67-65-68=264) | 3 strokes | Juan Cerda |
| 8 | 27 Jan 2019 | Abierto Rocas de Santo Domingo | −19 (67-64-67-71=269) | 3 strokes | Mark Tullo |
Other playoff record (0–1)
| No. | Year | Tournament | Opponents | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2019 | Pan American Games |  José Toledo, Fabrizio Zanotti | Zanotti won with birdie on first extra hole |
| Tournament | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Masters Tournament | T43 | ||||
| PGA Championship | T3 | T18 | |||
| U.S. Open | CUT | CUT | CUT | ||
| The Open Championship | NT | CUT |
CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" indicates a tie for a place
NT = No tournament due toCOVID-19 pandemic
| Tournament | 2022 |
|---|---|
| The Players Championship | CUT |
CUT = missed the halfway cut
Amateur
Source:[35]
Professional
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
