PGA Tour Player Blog: ‘Attitude’, ‘positive energy’ define my life journey

Colombian Camilo Villegas broke a nine-year title drought in Bermuda recently and shares in this blog his life’s journey, which includes the passing of his baby daughter, Mia in 2020 and why he has the words “attitude” and “positive energy” tattooed on his arms.

I enjoyed two very special weeks in November where I finished runner-up in the World Wide Technology Championship in Mexico and then went on to win the Butterfield Bermuda Championship. It's been a real journey, and life is a journey where it goes up and down. You’ve got to go back to that Colombian kid who came to the US with a dream, played college golf, played the Korn Ferry Tour in 2005 and then everything kicked off on the PGA Tour and I managed to win a couple of FedExCup Playoffs events in 2008.

You would think that kid was on top of the world. And I was at a point in time. I was feeling pretty good from a performance point of view. But as I look at where I am now and everything that has happened, I believe I'm a better person. Maybe the results haven't been there but this journey has been interesting. To lose my PGA Tour card, to go through an injury, to lose my daughter in 2020, to create Mia's Miracles (a charitable initiative to help others facing challenges), to go back to the Korn Ferry Tour, to keep grinding, to have doubts, to have fears, to have tears, have smiles — you just never know where life takes you.

Despite all the doubts, I never stopped waking up early, 5 a.m., 5:30 a.m., in the morning to do what I like to do because in all honesty, the cool thing about those two weeks is not so much the results but the process and what's been behind those results. As much as I enjoy reflecting on my win and the energy that I have received from the world of golf and those outside of golf, trust me, it's been unbelievable. I had 900 messages on my phone and I'm going to reply to all of them.

It's unbelievable to be honest. You kind of stop believing after nine years of not winning but I never stopped waking up early and putting in the work. You’ve got to keep a path and keep your mind to where it needs to be. I'm a hard worker and I love having a purpose every morning and that's kind of what I