Tony Finau. Pic: PGA Tour
Blaine, Minn, July 24: Tony Finau has parted ways with his long-time caddie, Greg Bodine, who was with him since 2014-15, the year the former joined the PGA Tour as a rookie. The break came after last week’s Memorial Tournament.
“We were together for six years and it’s a tough thing, you know,” said Finau after the first round at 3M Open. “On a personal level I love the guy and on a business level I felt it was time for a change in my situation and something just different.”
The man taking Bodine’s place was Finau’s long-time friend and teacher, Boyd Summerhays. In their first round together this week, Finau shot 65 to tie with Ryan Moore, Xinjun Zhang, Nick Watney, Max Homa, Bo Hoag and defending champion Matthew Wolff, two strokes off the lead.
“It was good, a really solid round, really clean,” FInau said. “I think I only missed one green and just hit it nicely, gave myself a lot of looks and I think that’s what you’ve got to do around this place. It’s soft enough to hit them close and I was able to do that enough today and make some putts.”
Finau had done the same last week at Muirfield Village, which was a decidedly different challenge, playing firm and fast and hard. He held at least a share of the lead through two-and-a-half rounds before things started to come unstuck. Finau played the final seven holes on Saturday in 4 over and saw Jon Rahm surge ahead. F inau shot 78 on Sunday and ended Tied-eighth.
Finau also held the 54-hole lead at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and was two strokes up with two remaining only to lose in a playoff to Webb Simpson. In fact, Finau has had six runner-up finishes since that win at the 2016 Puerto Rico Open.
With Summerhays on the bag, Finau had seven birdies and just two bogeys and ranked first in Proximity to the Hole and Strokes Gained: Tee to Green, third in Approach The Green.
Summerhays has caddied for Finau in the past and Finau thinks it’s good for the instructor to get a glimpse of his game inside the ropes.
