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Utah’s Tony Finau makes the cut in U.S. Open

BYU’s Rhett Rasmussen finishes seventh among the 20 amateurs.

Tony Finau hits from a bunker on the second hole during the fourth round at the Masters golf tournament Sunday, April 8, 2018, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David Goldman)

Tony Finau enjoyed and endured another adventurous finish in Friday’s second round of the U.S. Open, making the 36-hole cut.

The Lehi resident made two birdies and two double bogeys on his second nine, the back nine of Shinnecock Hills Golf Club, in posting a 2-over-par 72. Finau’s 7-over total is good a tie for 45th place, entering Saturday’s play.

Merely making cuts is not foremost in Finau’s mind, although advancing to the weekend at Shinnecock was significant after he missed the cut in the 2016 U.S. Open and failed to qualify for last June’s event. Finau was 1 under through 14 holes Friday, with the potential of shooting one of the tournament’s rare under-par rounds. But he double-bogeyed Nos. 6 and 9 to finish his day, mixing in a birdie on No. 8.

BYU golfer Rhett Rasmussen of Draper followed his opening-round 80 with a respectable 74 that included three birdies on his second nine. Rasmussen missed the cut by six strokes; he placed seventh among the 20 amateurs in the field.

Rasmussen was the first current Cougar golfer to appear in the U.S. Open since Oscar Alvarez, who shot 78-80 at Shinnecock in 2004. Scott Piercy, who’s tied for second place, began his college career at BYU before transferring to San Diego State.