Nelly’s emotional victory

Good morning golfers! Tony Finau won the Houston Open again this weekend.

1. Remember Tony Finau’s “inability to win”?

Cameron Jourdan, Golfweek Tony Finau entered the 2022 Cadence Bank Houston Open after a missed cut in Mexico last week. This was his first start for the season. He stated that he didn’t take any rest and continued to practice in an effort to get over rust.

• “…Finau was either the leader or co-leader after each round and ran off from the field on Sunday at Memorial Park Golf Course. Finau won the fifth PGA Tour title of its kind Sunday. He finished at 16 under par and won by four strokes.

• Finau won his last 188 Tour starts only once, but he has won four of his 30 races and three of his seven previous starts.

2. Tommy defends his title…2 Years later

AP report …”Tommy Fleetwood saved the best for last, shooting a final-round 67 in order to overcome his three-year drought and keep his title at Sunday’s Nedbank Golf Challenge.

• “The Englishman moved from a tie-for-seven overnight to finish at 11 under par overall, win by one stroke from Ryan Fox (68), New Zealand. Fox was hoping to top the season rankings with a victory from Sun City but just missed it after making a bogey.

• “Fleetwood won Sun City in 2019, but was the defending champ after the 2020 and 2021 tournaments were cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”

3. Ogletree wins Asia

Golf Channel’s Brentley Romaine Andy Ogletree finished at 8-under 62 in Cairo on Sunday to win the Asian Tour’s International Series Egypt four shots ahead of Bernd Wiesberger.

• “Ogletree’s final score was tied for low round of tournament. Ogletree is a former Georgia Tech All-American, and 2019 U.S. citizen. Madinaty Golf Club’s 72-hole tournament was won by an amateur champion who finished at 23 under. She only lost three shots throughout the week.

• “Wiesberger was never able to get any closer than two shots Sunday. Sihwan Kim, Jeunghun, and Jeunghun were the nearest finishers at 16 under. They tied for third, seven shots behind.”

4. Nelly takes the Pelican

Associated Press report Nelly Korda would love to forget that the year ended with American star, the No. ranked player in women’s Golf.”

• “Locked in an argument with Lexi Thompson on the back nine, Korda pulled ahead by making birdies on 16th and 17th holes and held on for a 6-under 64 to win Sunday’s Pelican Women’s Championship.

• Korda won the Pelican Golf Club title for the second year in a row, elevating Atthaya Thitikul, her Thai teenage sister, to the No. 1 ranking.”

5. Champions: Paddy in Phoenix

Brian Keogh for the Independent…”Padraig Harrington shot the lowest 72-hole aggregate of his professional career — and broke Tom Lehman’s PGA Tour Champions 72-hole scoring record — when he closed with a six-under 65 to win the Charles Schwab Cup Championship by seven shots from Alex Cejka on 27-under in Arizona.”

• “The Dubliner (51) had no choice but to finish second in the season-long Schwab Cup race, as New Zealander Steven Alker placed third behind Harrington to claim $1 million bonus at Phoenix Country Club.

• “But Harrington still felt the satisfaction of winning his fourth title on the PGA Champions Tour season with the lowest score of all his careers.”

6. Lynch discusses potential LIV leadership changes, status quo

Golfweek’s Eamon L Lynch A change in LIV’s leadership will not be about sidelining a polarizing leader motivated by a personal animus towards the PGA Tour. He is viewed with disdain and contempt by many top players, some of whom he has squandered with MBS’s money. Swapping out Shark would be a sign of short-term desperation rather than long-term determination. Perhaps even a new face-saving strategy from the Saudis. This would be LIV’s last move before it has to admit that the main problem isn’t who captains the vessel.

• “Despite Norman’s endless blustering and bots, it is not all well in the LIV metaverse. The PGA Tour has offered its loyalists the elite events, larger prize money, and bigger bonuses, but LIV has not provided what it promised its recruits except cash. There is no undisputed right to cherry-pick from other tours, there are no ranking points in the world, no clear path to the majors, broadcast rights deals, audience, public recognition as visionaries, or applause for growing and expanding the game.

7. 16-year-old wins Aramco event

Brentley Romine, Golf Channel Chiara Noja was ten years old when she took a picture with Charley Hull.

• “Sixteen years later, yes six, the 16-year old professional golfer found herself in the playoff against Hull at the Aramco Team Series Jeddah. Noja’s father took out his camera roll to record the occasion.

• Noja said, “Before they went out, my father showed Charley.” She was then the Solheim Cupper winner at 26 and two-time LPGA winner, to win her first Ladies European Tour title.

8. Casey’s Drop

Matt Craddock for Golf Monthly …” Paul Casey, the latest LIV golfer to be reported by the Twitter page Nosferatu is the last to drop out of the World’s Top 50. This has not happened to him since the 2015 Northern Trust Open.

• Casey joins Patrick Reed and Bryson deChambeau who also fell outside the World’s Top 50. Dustin Johnson, a two-time Major winner, has also fallen to 35th in Rankings.

9. Winning WITB: Tony Finau

Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D Limited 70 TX

3-wood: Callaway Rogue ST Triple Diamond T (14 degrees)

Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D Limited 80 TX

Irons: Nike Vapor Fly Pro (3-PW), Ping Blueprint (4-4-PW).

Shafts: Graphite Design Tour AD DI Hybrid 105 X (3), Nippon N.S. Pro Modus 3 Tour 120 TX

Wedges: Ping Glide 4.0 (50-S12, 56-S12), Titleist Vokey Design WedgeWorks Proto (60-T)

Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro WV 125S Tour (50-56), Nippon N.S. Pro Modus 3 125 Wedge (60)

Putter: Ping prototype for the PLD

Grip: Garsen Golf Ultimate

Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot

Grips: Lamkin, UTX Midsize