Tony Finau’s chances of reclaiming the Texas Children’s Houston Open title came crashing unexpectedly on Saturday at Memorial Park. What began as a steady round quickly turned into a moment he’d likely want to forget—one which had fans and analysts shaking their heads alike. Finau was even par for the day when he stepped up to the par-3 15th hole. Though he had started the round at five under, trailing leader Min Woo Lee by six shots, he had already lost considerable ground. Then came the blunder that turned an already frustrating day into an outright disaster.

After missing a routine four-footer for par, instead of resetting and going through his usual routine, Finau made an uncharacteristic decision—he tried to rake the ball back into the hole casually. What happened next was shocking. Instead of a simple tap-in, Finau barely made contact, and the ball only rolled halfway to the cup. The crowd watched in stunned silence as he tapped in on his next stroke, officially carding a painful double bogey. Just like that, any hopes of mounting a comeback were crushed.

To his credit, Finau didn’t let the mistake completely unravel his game. He bounced back with birdies on the next two holes, showing resilience in the face of adversity. But by then, the damage had already been done. His even-par 70 meant that instead of fighting for the title on Sunday, he’d simply be playing for points. Several pages shared the video and gave out hilarious comments. One of them was Barstool Gambling. They wrote, “Tony Finau just THREE putted from THREE feet”.

The missed shot was such an easy one that the golf community could not help control, making fun of Tony Finau.

Tony Finau dubbed as a clown

Despite measuring only 122 yards, the hole proved to be the most challenging of the round, producing the highest scoring average at plus-0.300. According to Shotlink data, Finau’s initial attempt moved the ball just an inch, leaving him with a remaining distance of 2.1 inches to the cup. After the incident, a PGA Tour rules official, Mark Dusbabek, was called over to review what had occurred. Upon evaluation, he confirmed that Finau had indeed attempted a stroke on the missed putt, resulting in a four-putt and a double-bogey 5.

Taking to this, the golf fans made fun of Tony Finau for not being able to take advantage of such an easy shot. They left comments like “Did he touch the ball on that stab???! Oh noooooo” Tony Finau is currently tied for 41. However, had he not missed the close putt, he could have easily dragged himself up to T35, getting closer to the lead, and, of course, having the chance of a better finish. But that looks like a rather far-sighted dream.

Imagine the difference just one missed stroke can cause! Taking to this, one of them wrote, “Let’s see how many thousands he loses off that stroke when the tournament is over”. Another sarcastically commented, “Get them all out of the way now, Tony!” One of the fans also joked about finally achieving their dream. They mocked, “I always wanted to play golf like Tony Finau, and now I do.”

What are your thoughts on the PGA Tour Pro’s missed putt? Let us know in the comments section below!