Tony Finau is in an excellent position to contend for the Claret Jug at The Open Championship this weekend.
Finau produced a one-under-par 70 on Thursday and a three-under 68 on Friday to climb into the top 10 on the leaderboard.
The 35-year-old has been somewhat out of sorts since the PGA Championship in May, with three consecutive finishes outside the top 30.
However, it seems that he’s back in form at Royal Portrush this week, and perhaps that has something to do with his change in caddie.
Tony Finau praises the local caddie on his bag at The Open Championship
Finau is playing without his normal caddie, Mark Urbanek, at The Open. Instead, local caddie Colin Byrne is carrying his bag at Royal Portrush.
“Yeah, Colin Byrne is my caddie this week,” Finau said in his interview after the second round. “He’s obviously a very well-known caddie. He caddied for Retief Goosen for many years and had a lot of success with him.
“But being on this side of the pond, he’s from Ireland, so it’s pretty cool to have him on the bag, knows this golf course pretty well, and he’s definitely been helpful the first two days.”
Finau shared that Byrne was “highly recommended” to him when he was looking for someone to help him in Northern Ireland this week.
“Well, he came pretty highly recommended when I was looking for a guy here this week,” he added. “I can see why. He’s got a lot of experience, veteran caddie.
“He’s been on the Tour for many years. I know he also caddied on LIV. So he’s been around the block and caddied for a lot of great players. I thought he’d be a good fit for me this week.”
Why Tony Finau enjoys playing links golf courses like Royal Portrush
Finau missed the cut at the last two Open Championships, but his tournament record before that was pretty good.
He finished tied-for-ninth in 2018 and solo-third at Royal Portrush in 2019. It’s clear to see that he enjoys playing links golf.
“Well, I like working the golf ball, and I don’t mind playing it on the ground,” Finau explained why he enjoys the challenge. “I think it gives you that opportunity on a links golf course.
“In the States, the game is kind of played in the air. How far can you fly it, and how much can you spin it? The golf courses there ask you for that.
“These courses ask you for shot making, creativity, and I’m able to kind of dig back into my creativity a little bit and play shots that I normally wouldn’t be able to play in the States. It’s pretty fun.”
Finau admittedly feels more confident this week because of what happened in 2019, although his tactics are slightly different this time around.
“Yeah, no doubt, it does [help], he continued. “But I will say I’m playing the golf course a lot differently than I did in ’19. I don’t know if… the conditions, I think, are a little bit different, but I’m hitting a lot of different clubs off the tee. I’m a little more aggressive. This year, I’m hitting more drivers than I did in ’19.
“But that’s just the way I’m playing and the way I see it right now. But it is nice to come back to a golf course where you’ve had some success and had a nice finish. We’re looking to get two spots better than last time.”
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