Who wins first… Tony Finau or Xander Schauffele?
Tony Finau and Xander Schauffele are two of the most talented golfers on tour. When you look at the level they are able to play at, you would think there would be a ton of wins between them.
However, this just isn’t the case. Xander Schauffele has gotten two wins, taking home two in 2017 and two in 2019 as well. Tony Finau, on the other hand, has won just once in his career, back in 2016.
It’s further exacerbated by the fact that they seem to be close all the time. Since Finau last won in 2016, he has finished second seven times on the PGA Tour, third three times, and been in the top ten an astonishing 37 times.
Tony Finau and Xander Schauffele have both really struggled to breakthrough.
Xander has had his fair share as well. Especially early on in 2020/2021. Despite being 2nd in Strokes Gained (a nearly sure-fire way to ensure you win), he already has three second-place finishes and two fifth-place finishes through just seven events. He has ten second-place finishes and three third-place finishes since the start of 2018, with 25 top-tens during that time. He only has two wins despite being near the top more often than not.
Was Xander a winner or a loser this week? You can make that decision, or see what my fellow PGN expert had to say on the matter.
A big part of it for Finau comes from looking at his round-by-round score, highlighted (or lowlighted) by the amazing disparity in 2019, thanks in part to Golf Digest.
"“In 2019, you see the same exact story, ranking T-102 in final-round average compared to ranking T-19, T-46 and T-16 in the first three rounds.”"
We are approaching five years now since Tony Finau last won an event. With how often he is there, you would think that he would have to get lucky at some point. The ball can’t always bounce against you (Unless you are a Buffalo Bills fan), and I feel like he would put a good final round together.
Finau is 31, so it isn’t like he is an old golfer struggling to find his way. For the other major American sports, an athlete’s prime is around 27-28. In golf, you could argue that Finau is just now entering his prime. I would say golfers don’t hit their prime until their early 30’s.
Xander Schauffele is a bit younger, just 27. He’s got a long way to go and joins a lot of talented and accomplished golfers who are the same age. You do have to worry a bit that being so close so often is starting to wear on him, and it may not be something that he can recover from.
Take a look at how he played the 17th on Sunday at the Waste Management. After going birdie-birdie on 15 & 16, he was on the tee at the very driveable 17th. Even a 3-wood would leave him shy of the green with a simple pitch to go up and down for birdie. Brooks Koepka had chipped in for eagle earlier, so the pressure was definitely on.
Instead, Xander snapped it left and went in the water. He left his approach shot way short, and would two-putt for bogey. The 18th was too little too late, and his birdie there was only good enough to get him to a T-2nd place finish.
Next. Brooks Koepka: Non-major accomplishment at Phoenix. dark
Both of these golfers are incredibly talented. You have to wonder how long it’s going to be before we see either of them get another win. Personally, I’m gonna lean towards Finau. What do you think? Which two of these guys will get the win on the PGA Tour next?