"I played really nicely over the last couple days" -Tony Finau talks about his gameplay at the Mexico Open at Vidanta
Tony Finau shot a score of 7-under 64 on Friday to take a one-stroke lead over Erik van Rooyen and Brandon Wu through two rounds of the Mexico Open at Vidanta.
Finau, who finished runner-up last year in Vidanta Vallarta, carded an opening round of 65 on Thursday to aggregate 13-under at the halfway stage. His second round featured eight birdies and just a single bogey that came on the penultimate hole.
The World No. 16 was happy with his performance on Friday. He said:
"Yeah, I played really nicely over the last couple days. I was able to capitalize with the putter on shots that I hit pretty close. That was probably the biggest story, hitting it nicely, but being able to capitalize with the putter is very important out here, and I was able to do that over the last couple of days."
Finau added that he did a lot of putting practice with his coach ahead of the Mexico Open this week as he struggled with putts in the past two months:
"This was a place where a lot of things changed for me last season, and I was able to post the second-place finish and just have a nice final round, make some putts that were very important, and then it carried me into a very nice finish to last season. So hopefully, I continue that good putting and, into this weekend and into the rest of this season."
The 33-year-old golfer knows it is only half the job done and he will need to maintain his consistency over the next two days at the Mexico Open as well.
He told the PGA Tour:
"Every week has its own challenges, every day has its own challenges, so this is not a time to get ahead of myself."
Finau was followed by Wu and Van Rooyen in 12-under. While Van Rooyen birdied three of his last four holes to finish at 66, Wu jumped seven spots on Friday after closing the second round at 64.
Jon Rahm finishes at T-12 after Day 2 of the Mexico Open at Vidanta
Jon Rahm, the defending champion at the Mexico Open, was still trying to find his rhythm on Friday as he posted a 3-under 68 in Round 2.
The Spaniard is on his second start since winning the 2023 Masters. The highlight of his second round was a long-range eagle on the sixth hole. Besides the Eagle on the sixth, the World No. 1 golfer holed five birdies, two bogeys, and a double bogey on the ninth.
Rahm has had a phenomenal 2023 season as he has already secured four wins, including a win at Augusta National. He is eyeing his fifth at Vidanta Vallarta.
First-round leader Austin Smotherman slipped three spots down as he holed 70 on the second day that included just two birdies. He is tied with Akshay Bhatia, Andrew Putnam, Will Gordon and Eric Cole at 9-under.
Former major champion Jimmy Walker is tied for 9th alongside Ben Martin and Cameron Champ at 8 under. While Martin and Champ shot 66 on Friday, Walker posted a bogey-free 67.