Tony Finau drops out of Hero World Challenge

Tony Finau is no longer in the field for this week's Hero World Challenge, the annual exhibition event in the Bahamas hosted by Tiger Woods.

Finau has not commented and tournament organizers have not given a reason for his withdrawal as of Monday afternoon. Sepp Straka of Austria was added via exemption into the field of 20.

Finau, ranked No. 26 in the world, is rumored to be a target for LIV Golf again this offseason, one year after he rejected their overtures to stay with the PGA Tour.

This comes as Spaniard Jon Rahm needs a new player to fill out his 2025 roster for Legion XIII, his LIV team, after Zimbabwe's Kieran Vincent was relegated from the league. Rahm and Finau are known to be friends.

"If you don't get along with Tony Finau, there is something wrong with you," Rahm said earlier this year, according to The Mirror. "If he's not the nicest, he's tied for the nicest person I know.

"Top one for sure and he's just a fun guy -- nice to be around. When it comes to golf, we're both extremely competitive. We have a great friendship, we clicked right away but that competitiveness drives both of us to play better. And obviously, unless I'm playing with him on the golf course, I want to see him win."

Finau is scheduled to play with women's World No. 1 Nelly Korda later this month in the Grant Thornton Invitational, a mixed team exhibition that pairs players from the PGA and LPGA tours. But Finau has yet to commit to playing in The Sentry, the PGA Tour's season opener in Maui.

--Field Level Media