Really? Tony Finau makes unusual equipment change at the Masters
By Matt Chivers
Tony Finau has decided to make a key change to his golf bag as he looks for his first major triumph at the Masters…
Tony Finau has made an intriguing change to his bag in pursuit of his first major triumph at the Masters.
As reported by various news outlets, the big-hitting American will be using two drivers at Augusta National instead of a driver and a 3-wood.
Finau already uses a Ping G430 LST driver which is 7.75 degrees and 45.25 inches long, and now he has added the same driver that is 3/4 of an inch shorter and 10.5 degrees, but cranked closer to nine degrees.
Ping says that Finau decided to remove his 3-wood because he could only imagine using this club off the ground on the par-5 8th hole, whereas he could use the more lofted driver off the tee on holes 2, 7, 10, 14 and 17.
Finau reportedly concluded that the more lofted driver could be more forgiving off the tee than the 3-wood too, which is why he now has two big sticks in play for the first major championship of 2024.
The six-time PGA Tour winner has shown solid form this season and his tied-for-second finish at the Texas Children’s Houston Open two weeks ago will no doubt have encouraged him to make a good fist of his latest appearance down Magnolia Lane.
This strategy isn’t unheard of at the Masters as Phil Mickelson won the 2006 Masters while using two drivers. Mickelson has always been a player to tinker with his equipment and he has used two drivers on more than one occasion in his career.
In 2019, Lefty put two Callaway Epic Flash drivers in play at the Memorial Tournament and at the US Open at Pebble Beach.
Tony Finau driver switch: Driver Specs
Driver one: Ping G430 LST (7.75°, Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 70TX shaft)
Driver two: Ping G430 LST (10.5°, Mitsubishi Diamana D+ 70TX shaft)
What other clubs does he use?
Find out what other clubs the Ping staffer has in play for 2024 in our dedicated Tony Finau WITB!
Has the driver switch paid off?
Finau hit eight out of fourteen fairways in his opening round of 71 on Thursday. That put him at 57.14% driving accuracy for the day. He averaged 308 yards off the tee, which ranked him 11th for distance alongside Matthieu Pavon.
His driving accuracy for the season on the PGA Tour is 56.50%. Of the holes, he planned to use the shorter driver (2, 7, 10, 14 and 17); he hit three fairways, giving him 60% driving accuracy with the shorter stick. He found the trees on fourteen and was 1 inch into the semi-rough on seventeen.
Given that Augusta is tighter than most weekly PGA Tour venues, this setup seems to be sending him in the right direction. We will keep an eye on his driving for the rest of the week before deciding on this unusual set-up!
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What driver does Tony Finau use more often at Augusta? Tell NCG on X!
Matt Chivers
Now on the wrong side of 25, Matt has been playing golf since the age of 13 and was largely inspired to take up the game by countless family members who played golf during his childhood.
Matt is a member at Royal Cinque Ports in Deal playing off a 5 handicap, just a pitching wedge away from his hometown of Dover where he went to school and grew up. He has previously been a member at Etchinghill and Walmer and Kingsdown in Kent.
Having studied history at the University of Liverpool, Matt went on to pass his NCTJ Exams in Manchester a year later to fulfil his lifelong ambition of becoming a journalist. He picked up work experience along the way at places such as the Racing Post, the Independent, Sportsbeat and the Lancashire Evening Post.
Matt joined NCG in February 2023 and is the website’s main source of tour news, features and opinion. He has reported live from events such as The Open, the Ryder Cup and The Players Championship, having also interviewed and spent time with some of the biggest names in the sport.
Consuming tour golf on what is a 24/7 basis, you can come to Matt for informed views on the game and the latest updates on the PGA Tour, DP World Tour, LPGA Tour, Ladies European Tour and LIV Golf.
What’s in Matt’s bag: Cobra LTDx LS driver, Cobra LTDx 3-wood, TaylorMade P7MC irons, Ping Glide 4.0 wedges, Odyssey putter.
