Tony Finau and Alejandro Tosti locked in "tense" exchanges at Houston Open
Tony Finau and Alejandro Tosti involved in "icy" confrontation in round three of Houston Open, confirms on-course PGA Tour announcer John Wood.
Tony Finau and Alejandro Tosti were involved in a series of frosty exchanges in the third round of the Texas Children's Houston Open, according to PGA Tour on-course announcer John Wood.
Finau and Tosti were joined by Thomas Detry in the final group, and Wood was following their every move at Memorial Park.
The first frosty exchange between Finau and Tosti came on the par-4 4th when both players ended up next to each other on the green.
UPDATE: TOSTI'S COACH GIVES VERDICT ON FINAU SPAT - "NOT OUT HERE TO MAKE FRIENDS"
Finau was actually 38 feet 8 inches away, according to Shot Link Data, and Tosti was 38 feet 9 inches away.
Tosti and Finau were looking at each other, with neither wanting to go first as to receive a benefit on the line and speed of the putt.
After several minutes of deliberation, Tosti stepped in to take his putt after getting Finau to move his marker.
But the Argentine did not appear keen to be putting first.
Both Tosti and Finau eventually hit their putts and they walked off with two-putt pars.
I've never seen a pro (much less a rookie without any wins) have a passive-aggressive argument with another pro about who is away on the PGA Tour.
But Alejandro Tosti just did that to Tony Finau.— Jack Hirsh (@JR_HIRSHey) March 30, 2024
FINAU TOSTI BEEF IN THE FINAL GROUP
— Brian Kirschner (@BrianKirschner_) March 30, 2024
Whoa…. We have DRAMA!!!! Super nice guy Tony Finau and his group partner today Alejandro Tosti have a FROSTY thing cooking today…. Okayyyyyy! pic.twitter.com/tJQxWVEICY
— Dave Ross (@drosssports) March 30, 2024
Then a similar situation played out on the par-4 6th.
According to Shot Link, Finau was correct to get Tosti to play first.
Finau's ball was 30 feet away from the hole and Tosti was at 30 feet 7 inches.
Tosti was again not best pleased, especially after Finau pointed at him to go first.
It was then that on-course announcer Wood confirmed tension was very much in the air.
Scroll below for Wood's comments...
Wood said on the live broadcast:
One hole later, Wood, who used to caddie for the likes of Matt Kuchar and Hunter Mahan on the PGA Tour back in the day, added:
Two holes later, footage showed Finau and Tosti holding an exchange on the 8th tee as they waited for World No.1 Scottie Scheffler to clear the fairway in front of them.
It appeared as though they were thankfully able to clear the air during that conversation.
Finau is bidding to defend the Houston Open having won the tournament back in 2022, while Tosti is looking for his maiden title.
Tosti ended up getting the better of Finau on day three as the Argentine shot a 68 to move into a five-way tie for the lead alongside Scheffler, David Skinns, Thomas Detry and Stephan Jaeger.
Finau slumped to a round of 72 to fall two shots off the pace.
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