Tony Finau watches his tee shot on the 15th hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament on Thursday, April 7, 2022, in Augusta, Ga.Tony Finau’s first round of the 2022 Masters went well Thursday, as long as his golf ball kept moving forward.
Finau played the par-5 holes in 3 under par, the par-3s in 3 over and the par-4s in 1 under — thanks to an approach shot to 4 feet on No. 17. Plagued by poor putting in the first half of the 2021-22 PGA Tour season, Finau missed two birdie opportunities from within 9 feet Thursday. But that’s not unreasonable on Augusta National’s tricky greens, and his lag putting was outstanding. “Three-putt avoidance is a huge stat that’s overlooked this week because of the way the greens are,” Finau had said Wednesday.