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Farmers Insurance Open: Power ranking the top 10 at Torrey Pines

By Mike Randleman

SAN DIEGO, CA - JANUARY 29: Alex Noren of Sweden walks up the fairway during the sixth playoff on the 18th hole during the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South on January 29, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CA - JANUARY 29: Alex Noren of Sweden walks up the fairway during the sixth playoff on the 18th hole during the final round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South on January 29, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Donald Miralle/Getty Images) /
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SAN DIEGO, CA – JANUARY 27: Tony Finau looks over a putt on the 14th hole during the third round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South on January 27, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
SAN DIEGO, CA – JANUARY 27: Tony Finau looks over a putt on the 14th hole during the third round of the Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines South on January 27, 2018 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

Tony Finau fits the Torrey Pines mold well: Use your distance off the tee to pound it out there and hope for some accuracy to boot.

Had he gotten some accuracy last year, he might have won. He finished T6 and just three shots out of a playoff despite hitting 39.29 percent of his fairways for the week. Finau averaged over 325 yards off the tee and had a decent putting week to compensate.

That was Finau’s fourth consecutive top-25 at the Farmers Insurance Open. Starting in 2015, he’s finished T24-T18-T4-T6.

"“…the South sets up nicely for me with my length. I think length is a big advantage on the South specifically, so I’ve been able to put some good rounds together there,” Finau said during the 2018 tournament. “You know, it looks pretty good to me. A lot of the holes you can hit a fade and I’m a fader of the ball, I like hitting the fade off the tee. So I think probably a combo of those things off the tee and playing this golf course, I have some momentum."

This will be Finau’s first start of 2019. He earned solo second his last time out at the Hero World Challenge in December.

Finau was the most prolific non-winner on Tour last year. In 2018, He claimed 12 top-10s including four runner-ups. He missed just three cuts in 28 starts and moved into the top 10 in the world for the first time in his career after the Hero.

Finau is most known for his length which helped him to 22nd on Tour in strokes gained off the tee last season. You don’t get to be as consistent of a player as he has been without all the shots. He was 53rd or better in the main strokes gained categories.

If he can sink a few more putts down the stretch, he’s going to start reeling off more victories eventually. Don’t sleep on Tony Finau pretty much any time he tees it up these days.

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