The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 Houston Open appeared first on Golf.

The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 Houston Open appeared first on Golf.

Tony Finau grabbed the lead at the Houston Open after a first-round 65 and never let it go after shooting three more rounds in the 60s to win for the third time in a calendar year, and the first time in the 2022-2023 season. Take a closer look at the equipment Finau used to take home the trophy in Houston:

Driver: Ping G425 LST (Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70TX shaft), 9 degrees with 7 degrees of actual loft

3-wood: Callaway Rogue ST (Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 80TX shaft), 13 degrees with 12.5 degrees of actual loft

Driving iron: Nike Vapor Fly Pro (3-iron; Graphite Design Tour AD-DI Hybrid 105X shaft)

Irons: Ping Blueprint Forged (4-PW; Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 120TX shafts)

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 (50 and 56 degrees; Nippon N.S. Tour Only WV 125S shaft), Titleist WedgeWorks Proto 2022 (60T degrees; Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Wedge 125S shaft)

Putter: Ping PLD Anser 2D Prototype (37 inches)

Golf ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot

Grips: Lamkin UTx

Want to overhaul your bag for 2022? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. For more on the latest gear news and information, check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast.

The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 Houston Open appeared first on Golf.

The post GOLF’s Subpar: Johnny Manziel talks playing golf with Rahm and Finau appeared first on Golf.

The post GOLF’s Subpar: Johnny Manziel talks playing golf with Rahm and Finau appeared first on Golf.

Subpar’s Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz are joined by Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel who shares what it was like playing golf with Jon Rahm and Tony Finau in the same week.

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Thanks to our official sponsor Dewar’s. Make sure to check out their Reserve Bar listings today: https://www.reservebar.com/collections/house-of-dewars

The post GOLF’s Subpar: Johnny Manziel talks playing golf with Rahm and Finau appeared first on Golf.

The post Who’s playing in the Presidents Cup? Meet the U.S. and International teams appeared first on Golf.

The post Who’s playing in the Presidents Cup? Meet the U.S. and International teams appeared first on Golf.

The stage is set for for the 2022 Presidents Cup where 24 of the PGA Tour’s top golfers — 12 from the United States and 12 from around the world (except for Europe) — will meet for the biennial matches.

Due to the pandemic, this will be the first Presidents Cup since 2019, when the Tiger Woods-captained U.S. team narrowly edged the Ernie Els-led International squad with a miraculous come-from-behind win in Sunday singles.

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The U.S. team holds a dominating 10-1-1 record in the matches and most expect a similarly dominate performance with LIV Golf defectors being ineligible to play in this year’s event and taking the hardest toll on Trevor Immelman’s International team.

Without further ado, let us introduce you to the players who are playing this year.

United States Team

*denotes captain’s pick

Captain: Davis Love III

Love was a six-time member of the U.S. Presidents Cup team and compiled a 16-8-4 record in those matches. Love — who was born in Charlotte, N.C., home of this week’s host, Quail Hollow Club — won 21 times on the PGA Tour, including one major win at the 1997 PGA Championship. He also notably won the 2015 Wyndham Championship at the age of 51, becoming the third-oldest winner in PGA Tour history. Love was an assistant captain on the 2013, 2015 and 2017 Presidents Cup teams and captained the 2012 and 2016 Ryder Cup teams.

Sam Burns

Career Presidents Cup record: First appearance

Burns may have been overshadowed by close friend Scottie Scheffler in the early part of the 2021-22 season, but the Louisianan had a break out year himself, winning three times, including taking down Scheffler in a playoff at the Charles Schwab Challenge in May. This will be his first appearance at either the Presidents Cup or Ryder Cup.

Patrick Cantlay

Record: 3-2-0 in one appearance (2019)

Cantlay had another solid year in 2022, winning once while defending his crown at the BMW Championship in Wilmington and teaming up with Xander Schauffele to win the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. He played all of his matches in 2019 with Schauffele and figures to do so again. Cantlay was also very successful at last year’s Ryder Cup where he compiled a 3-0-1 record at Whistling Straits, the one tie coming in the only match he wasn’t paired with Schauffele.

Tony Finau

Record: 0-1-3 in one appearance (2019)

The big-hitting Finau had a slow start to the season before catching fire over the summer, notching five top-5s in a stretch of eight events, including back-to-back wins at the 3M Open and Rocket Mortgage Classic in July. He somewhat surprisingly did not notch a win in his only Presidents Cup appearance in 2019. He only had one loss in four matches, however, and he’ll be looking for a new partner as both his partners from 2019, Matt Kuchar and Bryson DeChambeau, are not playing this year. He’s picked up three wins in his two Ryder Cups in 2018 and 2021.

Max Homa*

Record: First appearance

Homa comes in as perhaps the hottest player in the matches. He won in dramatic fashion last week at the PGA Tour season opening Fortinet Championship, holing a chip shot from off the 18th green to win. He also finished a career best tied for fifth in the Tour Championship in his previous start. This will be his first team match appearance.

Billy Horschel*

Record: First appearance

If you were shocked to learn Horschel is making his first ever appearance in either the Ryder Cup or Presidents Cup this week, you’re not alone. Horschel’s career resume includes seven PGA Tour titles, including this year’s Memorial Tournament, and the 2014 FedEx Cup. He’s had a mixed bag of a season, missing four of last eight cuts on the PGA Tour, but with the win in Columbus sandwiched between two of them. He did earn a top 10 in his most recent appearance during his title defense at the DP World Tour’s BMW PGA Championship.

Kevin Kisner*

Record: 2-0-2 in one appearance (2017)

Kisner is the oldest player on Team USA’s roster and has become known as somewhat of a match play savant, including a win at the 2019 WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play and owning an undefeated record at the 2017 Presidents Cup. His best finish this past season was a second at — you guessed it — the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play, but he did rack up five other top 10s. Kisner will also be looking for a new partner as he played with Phil Mickelson in all three team matches in 2017.

Collin Morikawa*

Record: First appearance

Morikawa came out just as hot as his first three years on Tour to begin this season with five straight finishes of T7 or better, but he fell back to earth a little toward the end of the year, his first on Tour without a win. Although he did lead the U.S. Open through 36 holes, he struggled Saturday and was out of contention by Sunday. The two-time major winner, who is still just 25 years old, showed better form at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in August with a T5 finish, but needed to be one of Love’s six captain’s selections to make it to Quail Hollow. He led the U.S. team in qualifying for the Ryder Cup last year and went 3-0-1 at Whistling Straits, his lone tie coming in singles.

Xander Schauffele

Record: 3-2-0 in one appearance (2019)

Like Finau, Schauffele also had a strong end to the season, finishing in the top 20 in all but one of his last 11 events. Again, like Finau, he notched back-to-back wins at the Travelers Championship and Genesis Scottish Open. He also teamed with Cantlay for a team win at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans and figures to see a lot of his close friend whom he has a 4-2-0 record with in Ryder Cup and Presidents Cup matches.

Scottie Scheffler

Record: First appearance

Scheffler has come a long way from being a captain’s selection at last year’s Ryder Cup. The Texan notched his first four PGA Tour wins last season, including a major victory at the Masters, and earned the World No. 1 ranking. While he didn’t come away with the FedEx Cup title, PGA Tour Player of The Year honors are a decent consolation — as well as the $5.75 million he got for finishing T2 at East Lake. He went undefeated, going 2-0-1 at Whistling Straits, teaming with Bryson DeChambeau in two four-ball matches. He also beat Kisner at this year’s WGC-Match Play.

Jordan Spieth*

Record: 8-5-1 in three appearances (2013, 2015, 2017)

After missing the 2019 matches, Spieth is back on the U.S. team at just the right time. With stalwarts like Tiger Woods, Dustin Johnson, Phil Mickelson and Patrick Reed absent this year, Spieth and Justin Thomas are the only players with multiple Presidents Cup matches under their belt coming into the week. The 29-year-old notched a win at the RBC Heritage this season and finished a respectable tied for 13th in the FedEx Cup. He carries a career 16-12-4 record in U.S. team cup matches and played with Dustin Johnson and Patrick Reed in all of his partner matches in 2015 and 2017. At last year’s Ryder Cup, he paired most often with good buddy Justin Thomas.

Justin Thomas

Record: 6-2-2 in two appearances (2017, 2019)

Thomas may not have met all of his preseason goals, but he notched 11 top 10s last season and his second major title at the PGA Championship. He brings with him the most impressive U.S. team match record, going 12-4-3 across two Presidents Cups and two Ryder Cups. In his two previous Presidents Cups, he paired with Tiger Woods, Rickie Fowler and Daniel Berger, all of whom are not playing this week. He figures to play more with Spieth as he did twice at Whistling Straits.

Cameron Young*

Record: First appearance

Young had a debut season to remember, notching six top-three finishes and was one of two rookies to qualify for the season-ending Tour Championship. Those top finishes also include just missing out on the playoff at the PGA Championship by one stroke, and the memorable eagle finish at the Open Championship at St. Andrews to earn the runner-up spot.

International Team

*denotes captain’s pick

Captain: Trevor Immelman (South Africa)

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Immelman is the youngest captain in International team history at just 42 years old. The South African is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, including one major, holding off Tiger Woods to win the 2008 Masters. He’s also picked up six victories around the world on the DP World Tour and Sunshine Tour. He’s a two-time veteran of the Presidents Cup and served as assistant captain under Ernie Els in 2019. Many fans will know him now for his broadcasting as he is expected to take over as the lead analyst for CBS’s golf coverage, following Nick Faldo.

Christiaan Bezuidenhout* (South Africa)

Record: First appearance

Bezuidenhout had a solid rookie year, making 20 cuts in 24 starts on the PGA Tour with 10 top-25 finishes. He’s perhaps better known in Europe, having a breakout year in 2020 while notching three victories including the Alfred Dunhill Championship. His best finish on the PGA Tour in 2022 was a T2 showing at the John Deere Classic and he advanced to the second FedEx Cup Playoff event at the BMW Championship. He’s one of five Presidents Cup first-timers selected by Immelman.

Corey Conners (Canada)

Record: First appearance

Conners played his way to the Tour Championship for the third time of his career thanks to 20 made cuts in 25 starts and four top-10 finishes. One of those top 10s came last month at the BMW Championship where he finished in T5, but he missed the cut last week in the PGA Tour’s season-opening Fortinet Championship. The Canadian has one win under his belt on the PGA Tour, coming at the 2019 Valero Texas Open.

Cam Davis* (Australia)

Record: First appearance

Davis notched five top-10s in 25 starts last season on the PGA Tour. His best golf came toward the end of the season when he made his last 10 cuts in a row. His best year on Tour came a season ago when he made 21 of 26 cuts and notched his debut win at the Rocket Mortgage Classic. His cuts-made streak broke last week at the Fortinet Championship where rounds of 74 and 70 sent him to Charlotte early.

Sungjae Im (South Korea)

Record: 3-1-1 in one appearance (2019)

The iron man of the PGA Tour, nobody plays more golf than Sungjae Im. Im had another strong season on Tour in 2021-22, winning for the second time at the Shriners Children’s Open and finishing strong with three T2 finishes in his last five events, including at the Tour Championship. The World No. 19 will be heavily relied upon as one of just four veterans on the International team with Presidents Cup experience. All three of his partners from Royal Melbourne — Adam Hadwin, Abraham Ancer and Cameron Smith — are not on the team this year.

Tom Kim (South Korea)

Record: First appearance

Kim burst onto the scene in 2022, finishing third at the Genesis Scottish Open, seventh at the Rocket Mortgage, and then capturing his first win at the Wyndham Championship in August to secure his PGA Tour membership and even qualify for the FedEx Cup Playoffs. He was only a special temporary member when he won, but had earned enough points to get his full status for 2023. He’s now exempt through 2024 and he auto-qualified for the International team.

K. H. Lee* (South Korea)

Record: First appearance

Lee has two PGA Tour titles and both have come at the AT&T Byron Nelson. At this year’s tournament, Lee outdueled Jordan Spieth down the stretch to defend his title. The rest of his season wasn’t much to write home about, with almost as many missed cuts (7) as top-25s (8), until he used T20 and T5 finishes in the first two Playoff events to catapult his way into his first Tour Championship appearance.

Hideki Matsuyama (Japan)

Record: 6-7-4 in four appearances (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019)

Hard to believe the 30-year-old Matuyama is about to start his fifth Presidents Cup, but the Japanese star heads to Quail Hollow as the alpha of the International squad. It was another good year for the World No. 17 on the PGA Tour, finishing 11th in the FedEx Cup after winning twice, with one of those victories coming last fall in his home country at the Zozo Championship. Only one of his previous partners, Adam Scott, is on the roster this week and they haven’t played together since Matsuyama’s Presidents Cup debut in 2013.

Sebastián Muñoz* (Colombia)

Record: First appearance

Munoz hasn’t quite played up to the same level as he did in his breakout season in 2019-20 when he got his first win at the Sanderson Farms Championship and then went on to finish 8th in the final FedEx Cup standings thanks to a solid performance at East Lake, but his 2021-22 campaign was enough to earn a captain’s pick. He had two runner-up finishes on the season.

Si Woo Kim* (South Korea)

Record: 1-2-0 in one appearance (2017)

Kim was the only one of Immelman’s captain’s selections with previous Presidents Cup experience, winning a four-ball match and losing in foursomes and singles matches in New Jersey in 2017. That season was also the year of his signature win, The Players Championship. He won in early 2021 at The American Express, but has not played well as of late, only recording one top 10s in 21-22, last fall at the Sanderson Farms Championship. Both of his partners from 2017 are not on this year’s team.

Taylor Pendrith* (Canada)

Record: First appearance

Normally for a rookie, an injury can be devastating. Taylor Pendrith missed time between The Players in March and the Barbasol Championship in July because of a rip injury, but it didn’t stop him from earning nine top 25s in 16 starts. Since coming back from the injury, Pendrith finished worse than T13th once in six starts, including a tie for second at the Rocket Mortgage Classic and a tie for eighth at the BMW Championship.

Mito Pereira (Chile)

Record: First appearance

Heartbreak at the PGA Championship overshadowed what was otherwise a very respectable debut season on the PGA Tour for Pereira. He opened the year with a solo third at the Fortinet Championship and had two other top 10s, including at Southern Hills. Of course his season will be remembered for the leading the PGA through 71 holes, only to hit his tee shot in the water on 18, leading to a double bogey and missing the playoff. Pereira was rumored to be joining LIV Golf, but reportedly is waiting to jump so he could play in the Presidents Cup.

Adam Scott (Australia)

Record: 16-22-6 in nine appearances

The 42-year old hasn’t missed a Presidents Cup since 2001 and is by far the most experienced player on either team, having more appearances than the entire International team combined and as many as the entire American team combined. His 10th appearance will break his own record for the Internationals. He also has a chance to tie or pass Ernie Els’ International record of 21 points this week. Aging like fine wine, the 42-year-old didn’t win on the PGA Tour this year, but only missed two cuts all year and had five top 10s. His back-to-back T5s to start the FedEx Cup Playoffs helped him play his way into the Tour Championship from outside the top 70 at the end of the regular season. Matsuyama is the only teammate his paired with before on the International roster.

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The post ‘Video game golf’: Tony Finau shoots incredible course-record 60 on 8,100-yard (!) course appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘Video game golf’: Tony Finau shoots incredible course-record 60 on 8,100-yard (!) course appeared first on Golf.

Most people know PGA Tour pros are really good at what they do by watching them dismantle some of the hardest courses in the world in the majors and on the PGA Tour. But it’s only when we get to see a Tour pro on a non-tournament course that we find out just how good they really are. Enter, Tony Finau.

The World No. 14 is currently enjoying some time off between the completion of the FedEx Cup Playoffs and the start of next week’s Presidents Cup, where he’ll be a key cog on the U.S. team. Of course, even when they’re on vacation Tour pros tend to play golf, as Finau did this week.

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On Friday, the four-time PGA Tour winner teed it up at the Jack Nicklaus-designed Painted Valley Golf Course at the Promontory Club in Park City, Utah.

The tips at Painted Valley stretch to a monstrous length of 8,100 yards (though players are certainly helped by the high elevation of the course).

Naturally Finau, who is one of the longest drivers on Tour, played from the back tees. Incredibly, he put together a course-record round of 60, the results of which he shared on Instagram.

Finau’s round featured 10 birdies and an eagle, without a single blemish on any of the 18 holes. Even more unbelievable? It could have been much, much better. According to a series of Instagram stories Finau posted from his banner day, his 12-under 60 also featured three lip-outs.

You can check out the footage from Finau’s incredible round here.

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The post The hilarious story behind how Tony Finau marks his golf balls appeared first on Golf.

The post The hilarious story behind how Tony Finau marks his golf balls appeared first on Golf.

When it comes to his kids, Tony Finau doesn’t play favorites off the course. But on the course? That’s an entirely different story.

As Finau was wrapping his second consecutive PGA Tour win on Sunday at the Rocket Mortgage Classic, cameras zoomed in to reveal the initials “SF” on his golf ball. While some pros mark their ball with dots or lines, Finau prefers to keep it in the family.

During a recent one-on-one around the equipment in his bag, Finau revealed he marks his ball by adding the initials of one of his kids on either side of the Titleist play number. It’s a sweet gesture that lets them know dad’s thinking about them during competition. (On Sunday in Detroit, Sage Finau’s initials were on the ball during the victory.)

One would assume Finau simply switches up the initials every time he tees it up to give each of his five kids an opportunity to see their name on the ball, but Finau prefers to play the hot hand. In other words, if he starts making bogeys or finding the bunkers with regularity, a new set of initials goes on the ball.

In this particular case, dad definitely plays favorites.

“If [Sienna-Vee is] performing well, I’ll keep her in,” Finau said. “But if she wants to go on vacation and hang out on the beach — goes to the sand, likes to swim — I’ll switch her out. So I end up having a favorite son or daughter by the end of the week, and my caddie and I will actually talk about it and say, ‘Who’s ready for an eagle? Who’s ready for a birdie?’ It’s a way for me to incorporate my kids and keep it light and fun on the course.”

The way Finau has been playing recently, Sage can rest easy knowing his initials aren’t going anywhere. Dad’s on an absolute heater at the moment.

Want to overhaul your bag for 2022? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. For more on the latest gear news and information, check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast.

The post The hilarious story behind how Tony Finau marks his golf balls appeared first on Golf.

The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic appeared first on Golf.

The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic appeared first on Golf.

Tony Finau shot four rounds in the 60s including a final-round 67 to win for the second consecutive week on the PGA Tour at the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit. Take a closer look at the gear Finau used to come out on top in the Motor City.

Driver: Ping G425 LST (Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70TX shaft), 9 degrees with 7 degrees of actual loft

3-wood: Callaway Rogue ST (Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 80TX shaft), 13 degrees with 12.5 degrees of actual loft

Driving iron: Nike Vapor Fly Pro (3-iron; Graphite Design Tour AD-DI Hybrid 105X shaft)

Irons: Ping Blueprint Forged (4-PW; Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 120TX shafts)

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 (50 and 56 degrees; Nippon N.S. Tour Only WV 125S shaft), Titleist WedgeWorks Proto 2022 (60T degrees; Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Wedge 125S shaft)

Putter: Ping PLD Anser 2D Prototype (37 inches)

Golf ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot

Grips: Lamkin UTx

Want to overhaul your bag for 2022? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. For more on the latest gear news and information, check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast.

The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 Rocket Mortgage Classic appeared first on Golf.

The post Tony two-time! Finau wins second-straight event at Rocket Mortgage Classic appeared first on Golf.

The post Tony two-time! Finau wins second-straight event at Rocket Mortgage Classic appeared first on Golf.

A winning feeling so nice, he had to do it twice (in two weeks!)

On Sunday in Detroit, Tony Finau shot a final-round 67 to clinch victory the Rocket Mortgage Classic, his second PGA Tour win in the last seven days. Finau, who finished 26-under, became the first winner in back-to-back weeks on the PGA Tour since Brendon Todd in 2019.

It was perhaps fitting for Finau, whose prolific career has been stunted by his struggles getting over the hump, to see his career victory total double in the span of just one week. Those around the sport have long predicted that the victories would come in bunches for the Ryder Cupper once he broke through. Prior to last week’s win at the 3M Open, Finau had recorded 50 career top-10 finishes — a gargantuan sum — to only two wins.

“It means everything to me that my kids can watch me not only fail, but they watch me win as well,” Finau told CBS in an emotional interview after the win. “That’s what it takes to be a champion.”

Finau toppled the field on Sunday with his ninth consecutive round in the 60s, nabbing six birdies to only a single bogey. Including Sunday’s final round, he has now played his last 9 rounds at 49-under, with 55 birdies to only six bogeys. Despite entering the day tied with his final-round playing partner Taylor Pendrith atop the leaderboard, the Utah native hardly looked bothered. After four pars to start the day, a birdie on the par-5 4th hole vaulted him into a two-stroke lead he never looked back from.

After playoff wins in the 2018 Puerto Rico Open and 2021 Northern Trust, Finau has won his last two starts by a combined eight strokes, finally tapping into the preternatural ballstriking abilities that have made him a fixture atop the Official World Golf Ranking since he turned pro in 2015.

For Finau, though, how he won is ostensibly less important than the fact he won. After waking up on the morning of July 24 with only two professional wins, Finau has doubled that number to four … before August 1. Next up, the PGA Tour heads to Greensboro for the final event of the 2022 FedEx Cup regular season, the Wyndham Championship.

The post Tony two-time! Finau wins second-straight event at Rocket Mortgage Classic appeared first on Golf.

The post Tony Finau has one piece of equipment that will blow your mind appeared first on Golf.

The post Tony Finau has one piece of equipment that will blow your mind appeared first on Golf.

Remove James Hart du Preez from the discussion and Tony Finau is quite possibly the tallest player on the PGA Tour. At 6’4″, the lanky three-time winner can dunk flat-footed and easily palm a basketball with his massive mitts. For most players on Tour who boast above average hands, midsize or oversized grips are the prudent choice.

There’s a noticeable performance benefit to using a grip that’s slightly larger in Finau’s case. If he were to use a standard grip, it would force the smaller muscles of the hand and fingers to work harder, causing an overactive motion through the ball. In other words, a smaller grip could make Finau handsy and cause the clubhead to release too quickly. Going larger can have the opposite effect by discouraging hand rotation and shutting the face on the downswing.

But enough about the science behind grip diameter — let’s get back to Finau’s grips. From afar, Finau’s handles don’t look all that different from a standard midsize, until you take a closer look. That’s when you’re greeted with arguably the biggest grips on the PGA Tour. And that’s saying something when you consider Bubba Watson crams 12 wraps of tape under the bottom half and 10 under the top of his Ping 703 Gold grips.

Finau actually has him beat. During a recent conversation with Finau about his gear, he revealed there’s 13 wraps under the bottom and 12 wraps under the top — an astounding number that makes his build one-of-a-kind. According to Ping, it takes at least one hour to regrip Finau’s clubs from scratch, assuming two Tour reps are on the job. (It’s less time if the tape wraps can be salvaged.)

Similar to Watson’s grips, Finau likes the firmer feel the wraps provide underneath the stretched rubber, as opposed to going to a larger grip that might have a comparable size but softer feel. Of course, there’s something most midsize options can’t replicate: the constant taper found throughout each of Finau’s grips.

As opposed to the grip descending in width as it approaches the shaft, Finau’s grips remain the same width from butt cap to the steel. There’s a valuable purpose behind the additional wraps.

“This is the size I like it and it fits my hands perfectly,” Finau said. “I’ve just always liked having a consistent thickness throughout. I don’t like to feel as if my right hand is coming off the club when I release it. I just want the same feel from one club to the next.”

Bottom line, feel is a top priority for most professional golfers, including Finau. If the club grip doesn’t feel right in their hands, something must be done to rectify the problem.

In Finau’s case, having a grip with a consistent feel allows him to go after it and release the club without hesitation.

Want to overhaul your bag for 2022? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf.

The post Tony Finau has one piece of equipment that will blow your mind appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘Quite a special feeling’: Tony Finau, with family by his side, wins 3M Open appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘Quite a special feeling’: Tony Finau, with family by his side, wins 3M Open appeared first on Golf.

BLAINE, Minn. — Tony Finau spent a portion of a six-hour weather delay on Saturday fishing with his kids, catching mostly bluegill in the pond by his rental home off the 10th fairway at TPC Twin Cities. When the tournament eventually resumed, he finished off a 65, which he hoped was enough to get him in the mix come Sunday.

Boy was it ever.

Just as Scott Piercy was imploding and giving up his massive lead, Finau got hot and took advantage, shooting a four-under 67 to win the 3M Open and claim his third career PGA Tour victory.

Finau finished 17-under overall, besting Sungjae Im and Emiliano Grillo by three. Piercy signed for a 76 — beating only four players on Sunday — and tied for fourth.

Finau’s family was here to greet him, too. His wife and five kids have been traveling with him nearly everywhere this summer, but they weren’t there when he won his other two PGA Tour starts, at the 2016 Puerto Rico Open and, most recently, the Northern Trust last fall. The latter ended a lengthy winless drought.

“To get a win with them here just means everything. It’s an amazing feeling to walk off a green knowing you won the tournament and walk right into your family, your kids’ arms,” Finau said. “It’s quite a special feeling. It’s something I’ve thought about and dreamed about for a long time. For that to come to fruition for me and my family today is pretty amazing. I’m humbled by it and hopefully my kids will remember this for a long time.”

It’s been an odd year for Finau. He’s played well, but many times not well enough. He’s finished as a runner-up twice this year and tied for fourth another time. This all came after a January-to-March stretch in which he missed three cuts in four starts.

The turning point, he says, came at the WGC-Match Play in March, which was two weeks after he shot 76-75 at the Players. He said he tweaked his setup, and it improved his aim and allowed him to swing more freely.

He entered this week as the highest-ranked player in the field (No. 16) and coming off a Sunday 66 at the Open Championship, which vaulted him into a tie for 28th.

“My game is as good as it’s ever been in really all aspects,” Finau said. “I expected myself to contend and win again this year, so to be able to do it this late in the season when you’re running out of tournaments and you put that type of expectation on yourself, it’s so satisfying.”

Still, Sunday’s finish was hard to predict. Finau entered the day five shots back as everyone was chasing Piercy, which was basically the story all week. He was tied for the lead after Round 1, leading by three after Day 2 and increased his lead to four before the final round, which included a 54-hole scoring record (18 under) that eclipsed the previous tournament record by three shots.

But Piercy looked shaky from the start and let his round get away from him around the turn. Even though he bogeyed 8 and 9, he still turned with a four-shot lead over Finau. Yet a couple of hours later, Finau walked to the 18th tee leading Piercy by four.

Piercy’s lead was three when he stepped to the dogleg par-4 14th, but his drive found a fried-egg lie on the slope of a fairway bunker and he couldn’t advance it out of the sand. He then took on the water with his next shot from 163 yards, but his ball splashed short of the green.

Before Piercy even hit his second shot on 14, Finau, who birdied 11, was rolling in a birdie putt on 14. By the time Piercy finished the hole, he was two behind Finau and in a tie for third.

Approach Shots

Finau added the exclamation point a few minutes later, draining a 32-footer for birdie on 15. He made it three straight birdies when he got up and down from around the green on the short par-4 16th.

“When I really needed to hole putts, I did starting on 11, again on 14, 15, 16,” Finau said. “I mean, I made some really crucial putts when I really needed them.”

For how much the tournament changed, Finau didn’t even know he was leading until he saw a scoreboard on 16 green.

“My heart almost skipped a beat,” he said. “I couldn’t believe it. I said, ‘Wait a sec here.'”

And if you didn’t think this was Finau’s week, you were wrong. The golf gods gave him some help on 17. He overshot the green on the par-3, but instead of going well past the hole, it ricocheted off the grandstand and bounced back pin high in the rough. It held up on the ledge and missed going in the water by mere inches, and he calmly chipped it close and took his par. Leading by four, he flashed a big smile walking off the green and gave his ball a kiss. He knew he got away with one.

“I called bank in the air,” Finau quipped.

The assist helped, because his drive on 18 barely trickled into the water guarding the right side of the fairway. But it hardly mattered; he wasn’t losing this lead this late.

Finau had 3 1/2 feet for bogey. As he waited for his playing partners to finish, tournament organizers ushered in Finau’s family members to the ramp behind the green. Finau sank the putt, waved to the crowd and pumped his fist toward his family. This was their first time to celebrate this kind of ending with him.

Thirty minutes later, in the media center near the 18th green, one of his sons picked up the 3M Open trophy off the table where Finau was about to give his press conference. His dad quickly stopped him. It needed to be a centerpiece a few minutes later. Soon enough it would belong to the Finau family.

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The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 3M Open appeared first on Golf.

The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 3M Open appeared first on Golf.

Tony Finau erased a five-shot deficit with a final-round 66 to win the 3M Open for his third PGA Tour title. Take a closer look at the gear Finau used to come out on top in Minnesota.

Driver: Ping G425 LST (Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70TX shaft), 9 degrees with 7 degrees of actual loft

3-wood: Callaway Rogue ST (Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 80TX shaft), 13 degrees with 12.5 degrees of actual loft

Driving iron: Nike Vapor Fly Pro (3-iron; Graphite Design Tour AD-DI Hybrid 105X shaft)

Irons: Ping Blueprint Forged (4-PW; Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 120TX shafts)

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 (50 and 56 degrees; Nippon N.S. Tour Only WV 125S shaft), Titleist WedgeWorks Proto 2022 (60T degrees; Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 Wedge 125S shaft)

Putter: Ping PLD Anser 2D Prototype (37 inches)

Golf ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot

Grips: Lamkin UTx

Want to overhaul your bag for 2022? Find a fitting location near you at GOLF’s affiliate company True Spec Golf. For more on the latest gear news and information, check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast.

The post Winner’s bag: Tony Finau’s equipment at the 2022 3M Open appeared first on Golf.