Walking in the footsteps of their father has long been seen in the world of golf. Charlie Woods has racked up a lot of attention for himself after he decided to switch from soccer to golf. And now Tony Finau‘s “Big Dawg” has done the same, walking on the path of success after turning away from basketball. Jraice Finau recently participated in a regional event conducted by Notah Begay III JGNC and sealed a career-defining win.

Across the two days of golf, the teenager accumulated 66 and 68 in the 2 rounds to post a 134, making him top the field. Tony Finau’s team posted Jraice’s win on their Instagram account, celebrating his achievement. In one of the videos, the 12-year-old was seen putting a birdie for a win, with dad Finau standing behind him. Afterwards, he walks towards his dad, hugging him with a shy smile on his face. The caption of the post said, “Proud of Big dawg! After 2 days, he was able to come out on top and punch his ticket to Nationals. Thank you, @nb3jgnc, for an amazing event. Jraice The Snakemaaan!! 😉💪🏽” With this win, Jraice has earned a ticket for the Nationals and will be presented with a chance to cement himself as a solid force in junior golf.

This rings several familiar bells if one remembers correctly. Jraice’s win finds echoes in how once Charlie Woods appeared in the golf domain, prepared to take the legacy of his father forward. Charlie had qualified for the same series of events 3 years ago. Although he couldn’t win the Nationals, his success in those events turned him into one of the most-watched names, outside of his allegiance to his surname. That’s big!

Between 2021 and 2023, Charlie piled up starts and steady finishes across the Hurricane Junior Golf and the Junior PGA South Florida Tour. He designed a stellar resume with wins at the Village Golf Course Majors, a T4 at the Notah Begay III Last Chance Regionals, the same event where Jraice won today. In the tournament, he finished a highly creditable 11th in the Boys 12-13 category among the field of 32. Dad Tiger Woods caddied for him at that event, just like Tony Finau has been doing for Big Dawg.

These events brought the world’s attention to Charlie. He was labelled “ultra-talented” with analysts interested to see how he will perform in the next 5 years or so. “I’m trying to provide as much space as I can for him. I want him to try and become his own man at the same time,” Woods told Golf Digest 75 once. Not much time has passed, but Charlie has continued to dig up a name for himself. This year, he won his first American Junior Golf Association (AJGA) title at the Team TalyorMade Invitational. He secured a three-stroke victory.

Now, Jraice Finau has a similar spotlight on him. Although he’s too young, like Charlie, the eyes are on him as he carries the Finau surname with himself. And that can be a setback in its own. Charlie Woods has faced that several times, with every action of his being documented and multitudes of crowds gathering at tournaments, no matter how big or small. “The type of attention is very different than what I had. But he’s learning to handle it in his way. I’m proud of how he carries himself,” Woods acknowledged once.

And Jraice Finau has been trying too in this regard. Earlier this year, he gave a promising performance with a playoff win at the Utah PGA Junior Series Majors’ Bonneville 1-Day (13-15 division). Now, with a Nationals ticket in hand, Big Dawg will be looking to carve out a name for himself, maybe by giving a better performance than Charlie. His win at the Notah Begay was special in its own, as it came on the day of his dad’s birthday!

The way Jraice Finau moves ahead in his life and career will also depend a lot on the kind of support he gets from his family, especially from his father.

Tony Finau’s part-time caddying for Jraice

Tony Finau has made it clear several times that golf for him comes second. First is fatherhood. He once told Golfweek that he’s “part-time golfer, full-time father.” This shows from the way he’s there for his kids, taking them along wherever he’s travelling, sharing fatherly wisdom whenever possible. “It’s pretty dang cool that we’re able to share that special moment on the golf course.”

In 2023, after he won the Mexico Open, instead of celebrating his win with family and friends, the 6-time PGA Tour winner was seen caddying for Jraice and Sage (his younger son) on the resort’s par-3 course. The video instantly went viral. Finau has made bigger sacrifices, too. When the PGA Tour finally returned to Utah after more than six decades, he skipped the homecoming stop — despite heavy pressure to play — because Jraice was competing in the PGA Junior League Championship. “I can’t miss my son’s tournament,” he said

He has been Jraice’s constant mentor and coach. His efforts are in contrast with Tiger Woods, who, although he has been a constant presence alongside Charlie in his signature red t-shirts, has been absent recently from significant events where his son participated.

For Finau, he has taken it on himself to guide Jraice’s early steps in the game. And now, with Jraice starting to notch wins of his own, it’s clear those choices are paying off.