Report: Finau Facing Two Lawsuits Claiming He Owes Millions In Earnings

Two men have reportedly launched legal proceedings claiming Tony Finau owes them millions of his earnings for financial support they gave him as a youngster

Tony Finau takes a shot in the BMW Championship at Olympia Fields
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Paul Higham
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published

Reports in America say six-time PGA Tour winner Tony Finau is facing lawsuits from two men who claim he owes them millions in compensation for support early in his career.

Along with his six wins, Finau has played in two Ryder Cups and two Presidents Cups and has career earning of $37.3m since joining the PGA Tour in 2015 – that’s the 27th most money earned of all time.

But now there are said to be two men claiming that he owes them a cut of his winnings due to the help they gave him in launching his professional career.

The Deseret News in Finau’s home state of Utah details two separate suits filed by two men who claim to have helped out a 17-year-old Finau and his younger brother Gipper as they started out in pro golf.

One of the men, Molonai Hola, is said to be a family friend and former business contact of Finau’s, while David Hunter is a Utah businessman.

Hola reportedly filed his lawsuit in 2020 with Hunter doing so in 2021 with both men, who are not working together on the lawsuits, claiming they loaned Finau money and gave him other assistance to help get his professional career started.

According to the Deseret News, Hola and Hunter “want repayment for loans and other work and services they say they provided to the family from 2006 to 2009, totaling about $1.1 million." 

The publication adds: “They also seek, separately, up to 20 percent each of Tony Finau’s career earnings, which could be in the tens of millions.”

Hunter told the Deseret News: “People ask why we think we’re entitled to his earnings. We ask back, ‘Who risks $500,000 on a 17-year-old kid who hadn’t done a thing yet in pro golf?' We deserve to be compensated for that.” 

Golfweek say that Tony Finau’s representatives would not respond to the allegations when they contacted them for comment.

Paul Higham
Paul Higham
Contributor

Paul Higham is a sports journalist with over 20 years of experience in covering most major sporting events for both Sky Sports and BBC Sport. He is currently freelance and covers the golf majors on the BBC Sport website.  Highlights over the years include covering that epic Monday finish in the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor and watching Rory McIlroy produce one of the most dominant Major wins at the 2011 US Open at Congressional. He also writes betting previews and still feels strangely proud of backing Danny Willett when he won the Masters in 2016 - Willett also praised his putting stroke during a media event before the Open at Hoylake. Favourite interviews he's conducted have been with McIlroy, Paul McGinley, Thomas Bjorn, Rickie Fowler and the enigma that is Victor Dubuisson. A big fan of watching any golf from any tour, sadly he spends more time writing about golf than playing these days with two young children, and as a big fair weather golfer claims playing in shorts is worth at least five shots. Being from Liverpool he loves the likes of Hoylake, Birkdale and the stretch of tracks along England's Golf Coast, but would say his favourite courses played are Kingsbarns and Portrush. 

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