Wild odds swing in 3M Open final round as Piercy opens door for Finau flourish

Tony Finau figured he was playing for second midway through the final round of the 3M Open – and so too did the bettors at BetMGM sportsbook as Scott Piercy moved to near unbackable favorite.

But golf is hard. And closing out a PGA TOUR win is even harder.

Piercy coughed up a five-shot lead he held over Finau with 10 holes remaining at TPC Twin Cities which provided a huge swing in the odds in short time, proving that betting on golf remains one of the most unpredictable and erratic, yet opportunistic sports to wager on in the world.

As such Finau claimed his third TOUR win – his first in front of his entire extended family.

Before the final round Piercy had moved himself to -18, four clear of Emiliano Grillo and five in front of Finau. But Finau would post up a 4-under 67 to win by three shots while Piercy dropped five shots in his last six holes to settle for a 76 and a calamitous T4.

“I was almost chasing 20 under all day I felt like. Seemed like Scott wasn't letting up all tournament, so to all of a sudden have the lead, I will say I got quite nervous on 17 just because it was a whole different feel on how the week was going,” Finau said after his victory.

“I never was near the lead. I was near the top of the leaderboard, but I was never within four or five shots. All of a sudden, I was the one leading the golf tournament. Sometimes you've got to learn how to play with a lead… but I didn't know I was going to be in that situation. A couple squirrelly shots on 17 and 18, but I willed my way in and really happy to get that W.”

Take a look below at the wild swings that played out over Sunday’s crazy final round.

ODDS TIMELINE – Tony Finau and Scott Piercy to win the 3M Open

Before Round:Finau (-13) +450; Piercy (-18) -143

After playing brilliant golf for three days Piercy rightfully held court at the top of the odds. If you put $10 on Piercy you stood to win $6.99 profit while the same bet on Finau would profit you $45.

Piercy Birdies the 2nd hole: Finau (-14) +500; Piercy (-19) -250

Finau had an early birdie to his name on Sunday but Piercy matched it with a birdie on the second hole, moving his odds in tighter.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $50; Piercy $4

Finau Birdies 4th hole:Finau (-15) +300; Piercy (-19) -167

The big-hitting Finau converts his 10-foot, 10-inch birdie putt on the 189-yard par-3 fourth hole to move within four of the lead.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $30; Piercy $5.99

Piercy Birdies 6th hole: Finau (-15) +450; Piercy (-20) -222

In what appears to be a crucial junction, Piercy takes care of the par-5 sixth with a birdie after Finau had failed to do so in the group ahead and extends his lead over him to five shots.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $45; Piercy $4.50

Piercy hits 8th green in regulation, Finau misses 9th green: Finau (-15) +700; Piercy (-20) -714

With a safe shot on to the par-3 eighth green Piercy appears to be in control as Finau’s approach to the tough ninth ahead finds the rough.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $70; Piercy $1.40

Piercy Bogeys 8th, Finau Bogeys 9th: Finau (-14) +500;Piercy (-19) -714

Having been brilliant with his putter throughout the opening rounds Piercy makes a minor error by three-putting the eighth green for a bogey but Finau also bogeys up ahead to keep the gap at five shots.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $50; Piercy $1.40

Piercy Bogeys 9th: Finau (-14) +550; Piercy (-18) -500

The difficult ninth also trips up Piercy and the lead drops to four shots but the bettors still believe he’s the man heading into the back nine.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $55; Piercy $2

Finau birdies 11th: Finau (-15) +300; Piercy (-18) -333

The first signs of a potential shift in things pops up with Finau drops in a brilliant 15-footer for birdie on the par-4 11th. It brings him within three shots of the lead.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $30; Piercy $3

Piercy birdies 12th: Finau (-15) +350; Piercy (-18) -400

With his tournament starting to look shaky Piercy steps up and makes a great bounce back birdie on the par-5 12th to hopefully steady his ship and get back on track for the run home.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $35; Piercy $2.50

Piercy bogeys 11th: Finau (-15) +225; Piercy (-17) -200

The faith in Piercy really starts to wobble now as he three-putts the 11th green for another bogey and now the lead over Finau is just two shots.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $22.50; Piercy $5

Piercy tee ball on 13 finds terrible lie right: Finau (-15) +250; Piercy (-18) -200

Just when it appeared Piercy might have put things back together his tee shot on the 13th hole finds deep rough to the right of the 13th green.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $25; Piercy $5

Piercy bogeys 13th: Finau (-15) +175;Piercy (-17) -133

The shot gained a hole ago is given back as Piercy is unable to get up and down from the long grass. With five holes to go his lead is now two shots.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $17.50; Piercy $7.52

Piercy tee shot on 14 sails into plugged bunker lie: Finau (-15) +150; Piercy (-17) +110

A tough break for Piercy as an average shot into a fairway bunker is punished to the max by plugging deep into the face of the hazard.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $15; Piercy $11

Finau birdies the 14th; Piercy’s second shot on 14 stays in sand: Finau (-16) +100; Piercy (-17) +150

For the first time during the final round Scott Piercy is no longer the favorite to win as his second shot stays in the bunker while up ahead Finau makes an eight-foot birdie putt to pull within a shot.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $10; Piercy $15

Piercy third shot on 14 goes into water: Finau (-16) -118; Piercy +800

It’s all coming undone now as Piercy’s third shot on the 14th comes up well short and into a water hazard. His lead will be gone by the end of this hole, the question is how far back will he be?

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $8.47; Piercy $80

Piercy fifth shot on 14 comes up short / makes triple bogey: Finau (-16) -250; Piercy (-14) +1800

In the final washup of a diabolical 14th hole Piercy walks away two shots off the pace. Will he be able to regroup?

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $4; Piercy $180

Finau birdies 15th hole: Finau (-17) -714; Piercy (-14) +2500

Although claiming he had no idea what had transpired behind him at this point Finau provides a crushing blow with an incredible 31-foot birdie bomb on the 15th green as Piercy is still trying to figure out what happened to his tournament.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $1.40; Piercy $250

Piercy bogeys 15th hole: Finau (-17) -3333; Piercy (-13) +20000

With his ears still ringing from the cheers for Finau’s birdie bomb and the haymakers he took on the 14th Piercy misses a short par putt on the 15th green to drop four behind with three to play.

$10 Bet profit at this point: Finau $0.30; Piercy $2000

Finau birdies 16th: Finau (-18) -10000; Piercy (-13) +20000

With his third birdie in a row Finau sets up a five-shot buffer over Piercy, the same margin he sat behind the same player just two hours prior.

$10 bet profit at this point: Finau $0.10; Piercy $2000