Tony Finau chips on to the 18th green at Weste Peter Dye golf course. Picture: Orlando Ramirez/USA TODAY Sports
Durban – Utah-born golfer Tony Finau, 33, out-duelled world No 1 John Rahm to claim victory at the Mexico Open in Vidanta on Sunday but instead of celebrating, Finau was seen caddying for his children hours later.
While juggling the pressures of professional golf and being a father of five and a devoted husband, Finau previously struggled to get into form and win on the tour and cement his name in the annals of history.
The Tongan-Samoan golfer has been criticised by some for carting his family around the world to major golf tournaments, but has been proving the critics wrong ever since, after winning his fourth title in 18 starts.
On Sunday, he played a final-round five-under 66 to beat Rahm, the 2023 Masters Champion, by three strokes.
Finau also posted one of his lowest scores ever in professional golf.
He took home a prize of $1.38 million.
The Mexico Open marks Finau’s sixth win on the PGA Tour, after winning the Cadence Bank Houston Open in November last year.
“Rahmbo is the best … he’s on top of the world right now, and I knew I was going to have my hands full with him all the way to the end.… I was really put to the test and came out on top, which feels great,” Finau told a CBS reporter at Vidanta Vallarta.
After his win, Finau was spotted caddying for his two children at a par-3 golf course, according to a video shared to Twitter by Sharon Shin.
She captioned it: “This guy just won four hours ago MexicoOpenGolf and is back out on the par-3 course caddying for his kids. @tonyfinaugolf is one of a kind.”
This guy just won four hours ago @MexicoOpenGolf and is back out on the par-3 course caddying for his kids. @tonyfinaugolf is one of a kind 👏🏻👏🏻 pic.twitter.com/8ny765tZeA
— Sharon Shin (@SharonShin92) May 1, 2023
Finau has been outspoken about his need to have his family around while playing, according to a Netflix documentary, “Full Swing”.
Win or lose, you’ll often find his wife Alayna and their five children – Jraice, Leilene Aiaga, Tony, Sage, and Sienna-Vees – supporting Finau from the sidelines.
Finau has said his family is more important than winning and the game of golf.
During an episode of “Full Swing” that focused on Finau, he said being there for his wife after the death of her father became his priority for a while, which could have negatively affected his game.
But Finau said that he wasn’t done and would continue working to get better and win tournaments.
On Sunday, he also got revenge against Rahm, after losing to him in the 2022 Mexico Open and tying for second place.
“I definitely believe you can be a great golfer, a great husband and a father. Balancing it is extremely tough, but to me it’s like, ‘why can’t I have both?’,” Finau said in the documentary.
IOL
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