Sami Valimaki, cousin of Coyotes defenseman, makes cut at WM Phoenix Open
Arizona and Finland have very little in common but for two Finnish professional athletes, it’s a homecoming of sorts.
At TPC Scottsdale for the WM Phoenix Open, Sami Valimaki is 5,413 miles from Nokia, Finland, where he grew up. But this week he is much closer to his cousin, Juuso, who is a defenseman for the Arizona Coyotes.
Or at least he was closer, before the Coyotes hit the road.
“It would be nice to be home one of these years, but it’s pretty cool," Juuso said. "He got in kind of last-minute, but it’s awesome."
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The Coyotes' schedule hasn't included much flexibility with the Open in town since Monday. When the first round began on Thursday, the Coyotes played that night at Mullett Arena against the Vegas Golden Knights. The Coyotes then headed on a two-game road trip starting with the Nashville Predators on Saturday.
Even with the busy schedule, Juuso and Sami were able to connect in those few days in Arizona since Sami qualified on Monday. With both being professionals in their own sports, it's a rare occurrence for them to find the time to see each other.
“He has to go this far from Finland for time to hang out because the summers are always so busy for the both of us. We’ve never really had too much time, so we’ve actually had a lot of fun hanging out,” Juuso said.
Sami turned pro in 2019. Since then he’s represented Finland in the 2021 Olympics, where he finished tied for 27th and was 9-under. Valimaki made his PGA Tour debut at the U.S. Open in 2020 and the Phoenix Open marks his 10th event.
Juuso has been playing in North America since 2015 and was claimed on waivers by the Coyotes in 2022. Since then, he's logged considerable amount of time on the young blue line and earned a one-year extension during the 2022-23 season.
Sami squeaked by in qualifiers, but made the cut of 50 golfers for Saturday's third round at 3-under after shooting 139 through two rounds. He has made the cut in four of his last six tournaments. Valimaki's strong first round of 2-under propelled him to finish tied for 11th. Coming into the event, he had an average finish of 62nd over his last five appearances.
The cousins have played together before and even with a handicap of five or more, Juuso still finished over-18 against Sami.
“I enjoy golf and play quite a bit in the summer, but the times that I’ve played with him, it’s remarkable how easy the game looks when you look through a professional’s eyes," Juuso said. "I guess that how it is, he’ll probably watch in the hockey rink and say it looks easy.”
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Sami Valimaki, cousin of Coyotes defenseman, makes cut at WM Phoenix Open
