“My family might be a distraction…” – Tony Finau opens up about his vulnerable side in Netflix’s Full Swing
Episode 6 of Netflix’s Full Swing had Tony Finau in the spotlight. The episode titled ‘Don’t Get Bitter, Get Better,’ shows the golfer opening up about his relationship with his family and how it has affected his game.
Finau, who rarely attends PGA tour events without his family, spoke about his wife Alayna and his children in the series. The 33-year-old golfer even spoke about people's comments about his ’family being a distraction’ for his golf career.
Addressing the same, Finau stated that his family was more important to him than the sport. The golfer even stated that the people making such comments didn’t know what they were talking about as they hadn’t walked in his shoes.
Speaking about his family on Full Swing, Tony Finau said:
“When people talk about my family might be a distraction, you don’t really know someone unless you’ve walked in their shoes.”
The golfer opened up about his wife, Alayna, losing her father. Tony revealed that he was committed to traveling to events with his family throughout the 2022 season. However, the golfer suffered bad results throughout the year and his wife’s emotional needs had some role to play in it. The Utah native went on to state that he was fine with his game, taking a hit for his family.
Speaking about his wife’s loss, Finau said:
“I knew what my wife was going through. It was more important for me to be there for her … than really be anywhere else, so could my game have taken a backseat? Maybe. Potentially. But that’s not nearly as important to me as my wife.”
My favorite episode -- and it's not close -- was the Finau one.
He is absolutely the man.
Also, absolutely not as cool as his wife, Alayna. https://t.co/qLreojWqZj
In the series, Tony Finau even mentions Alayna’s role in his life. The golfer states that she was with him from the beginning, back to “living out of a car.” Finau pointed out that he could relate to her mourning as he lost his mother Ravena in November 2011, just a day before his first child, Jraice, was born. The golfer even broke down while talking about his mom at his foundation event in Salt Lake City.
Tony Finau's son wants to be a golfer like 'his dad'
The episode went on to showcase Tony Finau’s relationship with his son Jraice. It is noteworthy that The Open at St Andrews was one of the only events Finau attended without his family. His family skipped his outing for Jraice’s IMG Academy Junior World Championships.
Alayna sent some videos from the event to Finau, who watched it from Scotland with manager Chris Armstrong. Speaking about their son, Alayna said:
“He wants to be like Dad. He looks up to Tony. His favorite color’s green just like dad. He loves golf. It’s a huge thing between them.”
Later, the family gets back together for the 3M Open, where Finau further speaks about his wife.
The golfer said:
“My wife, she’s been a rock to me from the beginning of our marriage. She saw me play when I pretty much was nobody. Getting through those years together was tough.”
It’s safe to say that the Netflix series has left fans in awe of the ‘family man’ side of Tony Finau.