Fabulous Finau sets up title tilt with spectacular finish

Story so far

Pre-tournament 25-1 chance Charley Hoffman leads the way after three rounds of the Canadian Open at Glen Abbey Golf Club, the four-time US Tour champion signing off with a birdie to secure a one-shot advantage.

Hoffman turned 40 last December and has played well in his three Majors since, with form figures of 22-8-20 from the Masters, US Open and Open. He tied for second place in the Arnold Palmer Invitational in March and lies 24th in the FedEx Cup standings.

Hoffman is a best-price 23-10 for Canadian Open glory, claiming favouritism after world number one Dustin Johnson made a mess of his third-round back-nine.

Johnson made a ridiculous double-bogey at the 11th, chunking his approach in the water when only 56 yards from the hole, then he closed with a pair of fives to finish in 16th spot. He is 22-1 to overcome a five-shot Sunday deficit. Open runner-up Matt Kuchar is tailed off in 41st place.

Leaderboard

-17 Charley Hoffman
-16 Kevin Chappell
-15 Robert Garrigus, Gary Woodland
-14 Andres Gonzales, Tony Finau, Sam Saunders, Jhonattan Vegas, Ryan Ruffels, Brandon Hagy
-13 Tyrone Van Aswegen, Rory Sabbatini, Harold Varner, Chad Campbell, Matt Every
-12 Ian Poulter, Dustin Johnson, Martin Flores

Best prices

23-10 C Hoffman, 4 K Chappell, 15-2 G Woodland, 12 T Finau, 14 R Garrigus, 22 J Vegas, D Johnson, 40 S Saunders, B Hagy, R Ruffels, A Gonzales, 66 C Campbell, 80 R Sabbatini, H Varner, I Poulter, M Every, 100 bar

Final-round advice

Charley Hoffman appears to be enjoying life at the age of 40, playing some of the best golf of his career, and there must be every chance he claims a fifth US Tour title today.

Hoffman has become one of the most efficient and consistent members of the circuit, but there is enough quality tucked in just behind him on the Glen Abbey leaderboard to make 23-10 a price which can be easily ignored.

Kevin Chappell made a mess of the 18th hole in round three, finding water with his third shot, but the Texas Open champion did well to make a bogey from there and has been driving his ball superbly for three days.

Chappell at 4-1 is arguably superior value to Hoffman. The younger man is a rock-solid ball-striker whose career should go from strength to strength with the long overdue maiden victory finally in his locker.

Chappell, Hoffman and Gary Woodland are three proven US Tour champions who must be respected from the top of the board, but in-running punters may want to consider Tony Finau as a better value option at 12-1. Finau finished round three in spectacular fashion and appears almost certain to make a bold Sunday title tilt.

Finau has missed plenty of chances on the greens over the first three rounds, but his tee-to-green work has been fantastic, and few players on the US Tour have produced such consistently good ball-striking this year.

Finau has made eight cuts in a row. He has finished in the top 30 in 13 of his 18 starts this year, finishing fourth in the Farmers Insurance Open, fifth in the Valspar Championship, third in the Texas Open and seventh in the Greenbrier Classic.

Over the first three rounds of the Canadian Open, Finau has missed nine putts of ten feet or shorter, but he lies in a share of fifth place and only three shots off the lead.

Nobody can be more confident of setting up final-round birdie chances than Finau, who has improved his score each day and finished round three with eagle, par, eagle.

Racing Post Sport followers are on Finau at 30-1 ante-post, but anyone looking to get involved at this stage should consider the 12-1 about the improving 27-year-old powerhouse.

Final-round twoball punters are pointed towards Finau and Woodland, who should dominate two poor opponents in the third and second last matches on the tee. Finau can outclass Andres Gonzales (6.20pm UK and Ireland time), while Woodland should prove too good for Robert Garrigus (6.30pm). Hoffman and Chappell are scheduled on the tee at 6.40pm. A sunny day with light breezes is forecast.

Twoballs recommendations
T Finau
3pts 4-6 Power

G Woodland
2pts 10-11 bet365, Betfair