Sungjae Im "Starts at 1 Under Par"... Morikawa Leads at 5 Under Par
Sony Open Day 1 Tied 16th, Todd on Track for 3rd Win, Thomas Tied 63rd at 2 Over Par
Im Sung-jae is teeing off at the 1st hole on the first day of the Sony Open. Honolulu (Hawaii, USA) = Getty Images / Multibits
View original image[Asia Economy Golf Specialist Reporter Kim Hyun-jun] Im Sung-jae (22, CJ Logistics) had a steady start.
On the 10th (Korean time) at the Waialae Golf Club in Honolulu, Hawaii (par 70, 7,044 yards), the first day of the PGA Tour Sony Open (total prize money $6.6 million), he posted 1-under par to tie for 16th place. Collin Morikawa (USA) took the lead at 5-under par, with four players including Matt Jones (Australia) chasing at 3-under par tied for 2nd. 'Sentry Tournament Champion' Justin Thomas (USA) remained tied for 63rd at 2-over par.
Im Sung-jae is the first Asian to be named 'PGA Tour Rookie of the Year.' Last year, relying on his ironclad stamina playing 35 tournaments, he was the only rookie to advance to the Tour Championship, the final third playoff (PO) event, accumulating points. It was rather unfortunate that he lost in a playoff at the Sanderson Farms Championship in September, which was included in the 2020 season. Following his victory at the Korean Tour Genesis Championship in October, he showed strong competitiveness with a stellar performance at the Presidents Cup in December.
On this day, he combined 4 birdies and 3 bogeys. Starting at the 10th hole (par 4), he faced difficulties with bogeys on the 11th and 15th holes, but changed the momentum with a birdie on the 18th hole (par 5) with a '2-on 2-putt.' He then gained momentum with 'stepping stone birdies' on the 3rd and 5th holes in the back nine. A bogey on the 7th hole (par 3) was recovered by a birdie on the 8th hole (par 4), ultimately maintaining an under-par score. It is encouraging that he hit drives up to 326 yards and recorded a greens-in-regulation rate of 72.22% with his iron shots.
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Morikawa swept up 5 birdies. He turned professional last year and surprised with a win at the Barracuda Championship in July. Locally, Brendan Todd (USA) hunting for his third win was another news highlight. He quickly secured two wins last November at the Bermuda Championship and the Mayakoba Golf Classic. He is tied for 6th at 2-under par. From Korea, Kang Sung-hoon (33) is tied for 48th at 1-over par, and Lee Kyoung-hoon (29, both CJ Logistics) fell back tied for 126th at 6-over par.
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