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Tony Finau and Sundays have a complicated relationship.
Still chasing his second career PGA Tour victory, Finau had another near miss Sunday at the 3M Open, finishing in a nine-way tie for third place, three strokes behind winner Michael Thompson at TPC Twin Cities.
Finau shot a final-round 68, equaling his lowest closing round of the season, but he was undone by late mistakes including failing to birdie the par-5 12th and missing a 6-footer for par at the 13th hole that forced him to play from behind.
It was another example of the thin line between contending and winning, a line that has been problematic for Finau, whose only win came in the 2016 Puerto Rico Open, an event played opposite a World Golf Championship tournament.
A week earlier, Finau was leading the Memorial Tournament midway through the third round only to stumble coming in on Saturday. That led to a discouraging final-round 78 at Muirfield Village where he undid much of the good work he’d done earlier in the week.
Afterward, Finau parted ways with long-time caddie Greg Bodine and opted to put his swing coach, Boyd Summerhays, on the bag for one week in Minnesota.
Asked what prompted the caddie change, Finau said, “My caddie and I had a great run. We were together for six years and it’s a tough thing. 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.”
How serious is Finau’s Sunday problem?
He ranks 18th in first-round scoring average, 25th in second-round scoring average, 14th in third-round scoring average and 171st in fourth-round scoring average.
Finau, one of the most popular players on the PGA Tour, has five top-10 finishes this season, including a playoff loss to Webb Simpson in the Waste Management Phoenix Open in February. He’s finished second seven times and Sunday was his 34th top-10 finish since his victory.
As for his Sunday struggles, Finau said he’s found himself starting slowly at times. He birdied two of his first three holes Sunday before stalling a bit.
“There’s a little bit of frustration but I hadn’t posted a top-10 before last week since I lost the tough one in Phoenix,” Finau said. “Coming out of quarantine you never know where your game is going to be. It took me a few weeks to emotionally be competitive and these last couple of weeks have proved that I am.
“They don’t give out second-place trophies, third-place trophies. I’ve learned that the hard way with a lot of them coming early in my career but I continue to just believe and hope for the best for my future.”
Staff and Wire Reports