Tony Finau’s latest Ping driver change boosts distance advantage at Mexico Open

Tony Finau, who’s looking to defend his Mexico Open at Vidanta title this week, comes into Vidanta Vallarta with an equipment setup that looks quite different than his winning week last year.

Compared to his 2023 winning setup, Finau is bagging a new driver, a new 3-wood, a new set of Ping Blueprint S irons and a new wedge setup, including a Ping S159 gap wedge (50 degrees) and a Gabe Golf 6109 “The Surgeon” 61-degree lob wedge. The only clubs Finau hasn’t changed are his longtime Nike Vapor Fly Pro 3-iron, his 56-degree Ping Glide 4.0 wedge and his Ping PLD putter.

Most notably – given the fact that Finau has been so dominant off the tee throughout his career – is the driver change.

As of January's The Sentry in Hawaii, Finau was still gaming a Ping G425 LST driver, which was first released to the public in 2021.

When he got to The American Express, however, Finau, who says he’s gotten stronger over the off-season, was ready for an upgrade. He needed a driver with less spin to optimize distance and control with his newly added strength.

“I've done some good work in the offseason with my body just to be strong,” Finau said on Tuesday in his press conference.

After working with Ping Tour rep Kenton Oates in Palm Desert at the American Express, Finau decided to switch into the newer Ping G430 LST model, which is a head that offers reduced spin. The duo also lowered loft by 0.25 degrees in his G430 LST driver compared to his previous G425 LST, so he’s now playing a 6.25-degree lofted driver.

Overall, Finau helped lower his spin rate by about 250 rpm per drive, according to Oates.

When it comes to driver fitting, especially at the high speeds of Finau, just a quarter-of-a-degree can make a huge difference in performance, so it’s important to get the details correct.

So far in 2024, Finau currently ranks 17th in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee, compared to his ranking of 44th in the same category in the 2022-23 season. It appears that the driver changes are working.

Good timing on the driver switch, too, since Finau says it’ll be bombs away for him with the driver this week at Vidanta.

“This golf course yields some birdies and I can really swing the driver with some freedom out here, as there's a few holes that are pretty lenient as far as hitting areas,” Finau said on Tuesday. “So I love that, being able to hit it hard and play this type of golf course. I do feel like I'm prime to go on a run starting this week.”

Check out Finau’s full setup below:

Driver: Ping G430 LST (6.25 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 70TX

3-wood: Callaway Paradym Triple Diamond T (14 degrees)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Diamana D+ Limited 80TX

Driving Iron: Nike Vapor Fly Pro (3 iron)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD-DI 105 Hybrid X

Irons: Ping Blueprint S (4-PW)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 120TX

Wedges: Ping s159 (50 degrees), Ping Glide 4.0 (56 degrees), and Gabe Golf’s 6109 “The Surgeon” wedge (61 degrees)
Shafts: Nippon N.S. Pro Modus3 125S

Putter: Ping PLD Anser 2D prototype

Golf Ball: Titleist Pro V1 Left Dot