Boyd Summerhays walked around Augusta National Golf Club last April, watching his brother Daniel play in the Masters and picturing another of his students in that setting.
Summerhays would text Tony Finau between rounds: “You’re going to love this place.”
Finau is there this week, preparing for his Masters debut Thursday. And yeah, he loves it. From watching the Masters telecast every year, “I know the golf course inside and out,” he said.
Daniel Summerhays experienced the demands of Augusta National last year when he shot 74-75-75-73 and tied for 46th place. He shot over par each day, even while parring the demanding No. 11 and never taking a penalty stroke or making a double bogey.
“I was really proud of myself for making the cut just because of all the knowledge the course requires, especially around the greens,” Summerhays said recently.
Finau believes he’ll be well prepared, having played a total of six rounds in November and March before returning Monday. He has some advantages over most first-time players because of his ability to drive the ball a long way and hit high approach shots into the greens. Those skills make his game “perfectly suited” to Augusta National, Daniel Summerhays said. “If I know Tony well enough, and I do, he’s got as good of an opportunity as anybody to win the championship.”
Boyd Summerhays compares the course to Jack Nicklaus’ Muirfield Village Golf Club in Ohio, where Finau has played well in the Memorial Tournament on fast, undulating greens.
“We’ve done some good homework,” Finau said. “I don’t think there’s going to be too many tricks for us.”
Finau has played in seven major tournaments starting in 2015. The Masters will be different than the others because it’s the tournament that spurred his interest in the game as a 7-year-old in Rose Park. Kelepi Finau taught his sons Tony and Gipper to play golf with Augusta National as a faraway goal. “Every time we’d go practice,” he said, “that’s what they were practicing for.”
Having visited Augusta National in November with his son, Kelepi Finau said, “There’s a different spirit to that golf course. It’s like a holy place. You can feel things you don’t feel at other courses.”
Tony Finau has studied Masters history. In practice rounds, he was eager to try famous shots such as Tiger Woods’ chip-in on No. 16 and Phil Mickelson’s 6-iron from the pine straw on No. 13.
No. 13 is one of the par-5s that Finau knows he must maximize. That hole is designed for a draw around the corner; Finau plays a fade off the tee. But he’s capable of driving the ball straight over the trees and into the fairway, just as he used to do on No. 10 at Rose Park Golf Course.
WHERE IS HE NOW? <br>Fruit Heights resident Daniel Summerhays made the 36-hole cut in his first Masters appearance last April. Summerhays has conditional status on the PGA Tour in 2017-18 and ranks No. 213 in the FedEx Cup standings. His minimum goal is to make the top 200 and qualify for the Web.com Tour Finals, with a chance to regain full PGA Tour access for 2018-19.
