Breaks of the game: Finau uses weather delay to line up eagle putt on 18

Tony Finau could very well be dreaming of Augusta National tonight.

With the final spot for the 2026 Masters Tournament at stake this weekend, Finau put himself into contention with a walk-off, 34-foot eagle putt on the par-5 18th hole at TPC San Antonio on Friday afternoon.

Converting the eagle opportunity moved Finau into a tie for third place on a crowded leaderboard, five shots behind Robert MacIntyre, who is at 14 under par through 36 holes.

“I hit a really good drive, pushed my second shot a little, got lucky, covered the water and was able to roll that one in,” Finau told reporters after the round. “Sometimes those are the small little breaks that you need to be towards the top of the leaderboard.”

Finau got a break alright. Lightning in the area caused a stoppage in play so he had 45 extra minutes to consider the putt.

“I had a lot of time to think about it. I read it before when I knew there was going to be a delay and then had another seven, eight minutes of taking a look at it,” Finau described the moment. “Double breaker went left, then kind of flat right at the hole. Not an easy putt actually but nice of it to roll in.”

How does a professional pass the time off the course waiting for play to resume?

Finau, like many of people, said he prefers to play Sudoku.

“I can’t say I was really thinking about the putt. More so just how long we’re going to be waiting for it,” he said. “I played a little Sudoku on my phone so that was nice to pass the time.”

Note: Tee times for Saturday’s third round have not been announced. Luke Clanton will return Saturday morning to complete Round 2. The Tour did announce the third round would be played earlier than previously expected with thunderstorms forecasted Saturday afternoon and evening.