LEHI, Utah -- It’s a big week for Utah professional golfer Gipper Finau. He received a special exemption to play in the Web.com Tour event, and now he’s hoping to make the most of that opportunity.
After watching his older brother Tony Finau and other Utah junior golfers like Zac Blair and Daniel Summerhays have success on the Web.com Tour and now on the PGA Tour, Gipper knows this is where he belongs.
“It’s exactly what it says to me,” Gipper said. “To see those boys from the ground up and play with them, I know I’m on the same caliber and level as they are. I know I have the shot and the game, the maturity probably wasn’t there, but hopefully I’ve grown up since then. We’ll see if we can go out there and have fun and get it right out there this week.”
This will be Gipper’s third appearance in the Utah Championship. He’s still the youngest player to ever make a cut on the Web.com tour when he was 16.
That’s the same year he became a professional golfer, along with his older brother Tony. Tony is now one of the bright young stars on the PGA tour, winning more than $1.6 million in his rookie season. The Finaus grew up playing Thanksgiving Point, so Gipper will have a big advantage this week, and that could be huge because the top 25 finishers this week qualify for next week’s event on the Web.com Tour.
“I know I have the game and if I play my game that the level I’m at,” Gipper said. “I would love to get in the top 25 to play next week. I would love to win this tournament. I know I can if I just clear my mind and play golf.”
