Tony Finau took advantage of Scott Piercy’s collapse and a lucky bounce at the 71st hole last week and picked up his third PGA Tour victory.
Now this week’s question is: Can Finau bring that momentum to Detroit Golf Club for the Rocket Mortgage?
The win at the 3M only jumped Finau one spot in the Official World Golf Rankings as he went from 17th to 16th this week. His victory last week came thanks to three straight back-nine birdies courtesy of a hot putter. And that’s typically been the club that determines Finau’s success on Tour.
He’s got a much stronger field this week — world No. 4 Patrick Cantlay is there along wth Will Zalatoris, Max Homa and Open Championship runner-up Cameron Young, who is getting closer each week to that first Tour victory.
Another Cameron — Cameron Davis, is the defending champion and he went five playoff holes last year and edged Troy Merritt for the title.
Some future stars will be on display this week — U.S. amateur champ Chris Gotterup, Cole Hammer from the University of Texas and Michael Thorbjornsen. Thorbjornsen, a Stanford University golfer, finished fourth at The Travelers and will defend his Western Amateur title on Monday following this event.
9 Comments
baxter cepeda
I do think Tony can stay on a roll. It’s always easy to contend for Tony and now it’s getting easier to win as guys LIv the pga tour.
Tony’s lack of wins have been an aberration of sorts, but it is only a matter of time for Tony to bunch a couple wins like Xander has recently.
Tom Edrington
None of the defectors has won anything in a while, DJ is the best of them and he hasn’t won in two years!!!
baxter cepeda
You still have that argument, which is nice for you. But like Tony’s lack of wins that fact is also an aberration.
Brooks and dj basically were unmotivated on the pga tour. And Bryson has been injured and busy reinventing the wheel.
It’s incredible these 3 and guys like Gooch and Ancer and many others have eluded wins. But everyone knows the kind of talent these guys and other on LIv —or on the way to LIv —have.
But to my point reports today from major news are that LIv is turning away top 50 players.
# You snooze you loose.
# remaining loyal
LIv is doing an interesting thing remaining loyal to guys Who committed despite already being able to knock some of guys off their 48 man roster for top 50 talent.
As I said it’s getting harder to get into and win LIv whole easier to stay on and win on the pga tour.
That being said it’s still a nightmare to get into the pga tour, a system designed for rich (mostly white) boys to succeed.
Meanwhile top College boys are being offered money to play LIv. Travel expenses. A group to travel with.
#easy choice for most.
Tom Edrington
They’ve realized that they are overpaying has-beens like Mickelson for poor performance. There’s an unlimited number of 40-and-over who cannot compete on the PGA Tour who crave that LIV money….Charlie Three Sticks is a perfect example……by the way, the Tour is quietly talking to members of congress and with The Donald a big LIV supporter, well, that’s not good for LIV.
baxter cepeda
Liv are doing what they have to do. They will more than make up their investment over time, which is what they have done with previous investments in sports.
Some of the folks behind the LIv money and the courses they use may have a lot to improve on, maybe even legally, but their assets are legal.
Trump is providing a course. As LIv grows and more courses great show interest, Trumps courses may get kicked to the curb. But then Again a lot of people still love Trump, so much so he may still run, that’s the country we live in. Which is exactly why we still need to look at ourselves in the mirror before pointing out others flaws.
The pga tour can try to collude or whatever they do to get their perks and exemptions and advantages from Congress, but I don’t see anyone saving them this time.
Today I was watching these two credible u tube guys who have a logic show. They went over the top 5 mistakes by the pga tour and throughout show host kept saying Monahan should be fired.
Charlie 3 sticks I truly believe is not doing it for the money, as he said. He wants to travel more as he has not been a guy who traveled much; probably because he was not offered as much money to travel as some others.
Also just wanted a change. But as they joked at the LIv presser the guy has made nearly 50$ million on the course and all this sports geek does when not competing is watch golf and other sports. I can tell you you don’t need much money to do that.
One thing that’s getting old is LIv haters saying players aren’t admitting it’s about the money. They absolutely are saying the money has played a huge part. But what LIv haters aren’t admitting is that there are a ton of other reasons for players to leave the pga tour for LIv; all the reasons the pga tour are now scrambling to copy.
Tom Edrington
Baxter, you are amazingly naive…..I’d like to see your business plan for any sports enterprise to make ONE BILLION dollars in profit…..they would need that just to recoup the investment; A typical NFL team makes around $125 million at the bottom line on an annual basis. Glad Bubba left, he’s an amazing ass and has shown that consistently over the years.
baxter cepeda
Yes Tom it will take decades potentially. But they will make profit eventually. I think it will move faster than all the smart people that do think they will be successful think.
Tom Edrington
Typical reply from someone who doesn’t understand business, numbers, costs and overhead……they’d basically have to turn into APPLE in the next few years…..Norman’s been caught contradicting himself, when asked questions, scripted answers are given….this is a sports venture not being funded by a free society…..the pension fund will tire of throwing good money after bad…..it’s an inferior product and a 54-hole exhibition, it’s simply a version of the Champions Tour with lots of 40-plus guys guys outside the top 1000 from the Asian Tour; Norman says now that they may require players to show up for Asian Tour events, they’re making this stuff up on the fly….now they want to morph into a Formula 1 model…..it’s laughable.
baxter cepeda
Few points to address:
I grew up involved in a family business that’s been around since the 80s, so I do know some things about business.
They don’t have to turn into Apple. They just have to continue doing what theta team doing
Norman has been very free imo and open that this is a startup willing to explore different avenues. But the F1 model has been a part of the plan from the beginning, it’s nothing new.
It’s true that a free society is not funding this…just yet. More and more dealings are in the works. Ask Shipnuck.
This is not the champions tour, it’s the beginning of a premier player tour, and a significant number of premier players have already made the switch.
Even Shipnuck is saying LIv cannot be denied at this point as he enjoys being credentialed, adding now to Dan Patrick it was Phil’s security that booted him nightclub style and not LIv security.
The 54 hole shotgun thing is great. I’m literally counting minutes to 1 eastern because I love the model . I’m so over watching the butt end of the pga tour coverage on Thursday’s and fridays; where all you see is the leaders are done for the day.
Many very important golf tournaments from juniors to college to pros are played over 54 holes. There is absolutely nothing wrong with competing over 54 holes. In fact in an increasingly global sport it’s almost a necessity.
…not that it’s an issue for LIv yet, as players have plenty of time to refresh between events, but eventually LIv players will play all over.
Yes LIv is going to have a relegation system. I don’t think any of the players on LIv expected some decades long league of playing the first 48 guys to sign with LIv.
And yes players will have to go to Asia to return to LIv and to get world rank points in the foreseeable future.
Obviously the Asian tour is on the way up. This won’t be the last generations Asian tour, there will be more money moving forward, more points, more everything, But eventually the players will also go to the euros tour and Monahans tour; making the Asian tour lose some of the value it is gaining now.
Once players get relegated, they will have more than enough cash to give up tour golf if they feel they cannot make it back to LIv. Same thing happens on the pga tour.
Anyways. I’m off to watch David get introduced to the LIv coverage.
Ta Ta