Tony Finau’s first round of the 2022 Masters went well Thursday, as long as his golf ball kept moving forward.
The West High School graduate posted a 1-under-par 71 to put himself in position for at least a fourth top-10 finish in five appearances at Augusta National Golf Club.
Sandy resident Mike Weir, playing in his 23rd consecutive Masters at age 51, shot a 74 and has a decent chance to make the 36-hole cut to 50 players (plus ties) for only the second time since 2015.
Finau played the par-5 holes in 3 under par, the par-3s in 3 over and the par-4s in 1 under — thanks to an approach shot to 4 feet on No. 17.
He double-bogeyed No. 4 after his tee shot went into the gallery on the left side and the ball rolled backward down a path and into the trees, forcing a punch-out short of the green. On No. 12, his ball landed on the bank and rolled down into the water, although he salvaged a bogey with an excellent pitch shot.
Finau’s second shot on the par-5 No. 15 luckily stayed on the bank above the water. He then chipped to 11 feet and made the birdie putt. He two-putted for birdies on the first two par-5s, Nos. 2 and 8, and settled for a par after a drive into the trees on No. 13.
Plagued by poor putting in the first half of the 2021-22 PGA Tour season, Finau missed two birdie opportunities from within 9 feet Thursday. But that’s not unreasonable on Augusta National’s tricky greens, and his lag putting was outstanding. “Three-putt avoidance is a huge stat that’s overlooked this week because of the way the greens are,” Finau had said Wednesday.
Weir double-bogeyed No. 1 when he missed the green with his long approach shot and three-putted from 14 feet. “But the rest of the day, I played fine,” he said, after making two birdies and two bogeys.
He birdied the par-4 No. 3 after hitting a fairway-bunker shot to 7 feet and made a 10-foot birdie putt on No. 12. Weir bogeyed Nos. 11 and 16, but was more disappointed about failing to birdie any par-5s.
“For me to score well around here, I have to convert my wedges, and I didn’t do that today,” he said.
Weir will tee off Friday at 9:18 a.m. MDT; Finau is in the last threesome of the day, starting at 12:03 p.m.
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