Finau fires 62 for early lead in Houston Open
HOUSTON – Tony Finau finished his opening round with a string of birdies and then took the momentum right into Friday, making 10 birdies to match his career low with an 8-under 62 to build a big lead in the Houston Open.
Finau was at his best late in the round at Memorial Park, finishing with three straight birdies. His final shot from light rough left of the 18th fairway still had enough spin to check up about 4 feet from the hole.
He was at 13-under 127 and four shots clear of Patrick Rodgers (63) among early starters.
Alex Noren, part of the three-way tie for the 18-hole lead, was at 8 under with three holes to play when bad weather in the forecast stopped play for the rest of Friday. Noren was facing a 40-foot eagle putt when play resumes Saturday. Masters champion Scottie Scheffler also was in the late wave and was 5 under through 13 holes.
Thunderstorms and gusts that halted play are part of a system that is expected to shift to a northerly wind and drop temperatures some 20 degrees over the weekend.
Several tee boxes and pin positions were adjusted to account for the forecast. Finau and the other early starters had relatively calm conditions, and he knew Friday morning was the time to score. That’s just what he did.
“They set the tee boxes up to where we had to take advantage. We got the better wave,” Finau said. “Thirty-six holes is a lot of golf left, and it’s trickier to score with a north wind.”
Finau has had a 62 four previous times, most recently at the Canadian Open this summer.
Rodgers his second shot to inside 2 feet on the par-5 third hole – he started on the back nine – for an eagle, and he finished with two birdies for his 63.
He was in contention late at the windblown Bermuda Championship two weeks ago, tying for third in his quest to finally win on the PGA Tour. Rodgers was among the elite when he left Stanford a decade ago, growing up in the same junior golf circles as Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas.
PGA Tour Champions
PHOENIX – PGA Tour Champions points leader Steven Alker shot his second straight bogey-free round at the Charles Schwab Championship, a 7-under 64 that gave him a one-shot lead over Padraig Harrington.
Alker made seven birdies at Phoenix Country Club to reach 13 under through two rounds, keeping him comfortably in front of the only player who can overtake him for the Schwab Cup. Harrington also shot 64 and was 12 under, but needs to win and have Alker finish outside the top five to win the PGA Tour Champions season championship.
Retief Goosen shot 64 and was tied for third at 10 under with Brian Gay, who shot 65. Bernhard Langer closed with a bogey on the reachable par-5 18th to shoot 69. He’s at six back at 7 under in his bid to match Hale Irwin’s record of 45 senior tour wins.
Alker had to make a 15-foot par putt on No. 17 to preserve a bogey-free 65 to tie for the lead in the opening round, but spent most of a balmy Friday afternoon in the desert hitting fairways and greens.
The 51-year-old from New Zealand opened the second round with consecutive birdies and added two more to turn in 4-under 32. Alker rolled in a birdie putt on the short par-4 11th and another on No. 15 after squeezing his tee shot on the par 3 between a tight pin and a bunker.
He added another birdie on the par-4 17th, but pulled his tee shot into the left rough on the par-5 18th. Alker hit his second shot over a strand of trees to the fairway and his third to 30 feet, but left the birdie putt short.