SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Tony Finau admits that even though he’s competing this week in the Lone Star State, Georgia is on his mind.
TPC San Antonio’s Oaks Course is the site of this week’s Valero Texas Open, and it’s also the last-chance saloon for players dreaming of a chance of playing in the 90th edition of the Masters, which begins a week from today. Finau is looking to extend his streak of playing at Augusta National to nine straight years, but to do so he’ll need to win to be in. He took care of a good start thanks to a 6-under 66 on Thursday to share the first-round lead with Davis Thompson.
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“Sure, I’m thinking of it,” Finau said. “That’s the place to be.”
Finau is coming off a winless season last year and has had to ask for invites into the signature events after finishing outside the top 50 on the money, which snapped his streak of appearances at the Tour Championship at eight in a row. He’s made six of nine cuts this season and sits No. 58 in the FedEx Cup standings but has yet to finish in the top 10 (a T-11 at the Farmers Insurance Open is his best result.)
“I feel like I’m really close to putting together a string of good golf tournaments. I’ve had some good days during tournaments, whether that’s in the first round, the final round, but I haven’t been able to put together I feel like really strong finishes and four days of good golf,” he said. “So I’m off to a good start this week. I’ll just be looking to capitalize on three more days of good golf.”
Starting on the back nine, Finau scratched and clawed for a couple of key par saves to begin and nailed his tee shot to 9 feet at 13 for his first birdie. Then he poured in a 41-foot eagle putt at the par-5 14th. He made his lone bogey of the day at No. 1 but overall was pleased with his performance. Finau switched to a Ping Scottsdale TEC Ally putter earlier this season and credited it for his hot start.
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“I feel like I’m really close to putting together a string of good golf tournaments. I’ve had some good days during tournaments, whether that’s in the first round, the final round, but I haven’t been able to put together I feel like really strong finishes and four days of good golf. So I’m off to a good start this week. I’ll just be looking to capitalize on three more days of good golf.”
A streak of 33 straight majors – beginning at the 2017 U.S. Open – could be in jeopardy, but Finau refuses to go quietly.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Tony Finau needs a win at Texas Open to make the Masters
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