McIlroy 6 Under Par "Number 1 Power"... Im Sungjae 2 Under Par

Arnold Palmer Invitational Day 1: Every Leads by 1 Stroke, Kang Sung-hoon Tied 11th at 3 Under Par

Rory McIlroy (right) is looking at the course on the 6th hole on the first day of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Orlando, Florida, USA = Getty Images / Multibits

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] World No.1 Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) is on a 'march for his second victory.'

On the 6th (Korean time), at Bay Hill Golf Club in Orlando, Florida, USA (par 72, 7,454 yards), the first day of the PGA Tour Arnold Palmer Invitational (total prize money $9.3 million) began, and McIlroy shot 6 under par to settle in second place, just one stroke behind the leader. Matt Every (USA) leads at 7 under par, with Taylor Gooch (USA) chasing at 5 under par tied for third. From Korea, Kang Sung-hoon (33, CJ Logistics) is tied for 11th at 3 under par.

McIlroy recorded one eagle, five birdies, and one bogey. Starting at the 10th hole (par 4), he faced difficulty after his second shot at the 11th hole (par 4) landed in the water, resulting in a bogey. However, he changed the momentum with a '2-on 2-putt' birdie at the 16th hole (par 5), followed by consecutive birdies at the 18th and 1st holes, gaining upward momentum. The highlight was the 4th hole (par 5), where he successfully reached the green in two shots from a fairway bunker 259 yards away and sank a 7-meter eagle putt. He added 'stepping stone birdies' at the 6th and 8th holes.

Last November, he secured an early victory by winning the HSBC Champions, part of the 2020 World Golf Championships (WGC) series. It is noteworthy that McIlroy finished in the 'top 5' in all five tournaments, including a tie for 3rd at the Zozo Championship in October last year, a tie for 3rd at the Farmers Open in January, a tie for 5th at the Genesis Invitational in February, and 5th at the Mexico Championship. Moreover, this tournament is a stronghold for him, as he won with an 8-under-par final round in 2018, achieving a 3-stroke victory.

Im Sung-jae is making a bunker shot on the first day of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Orlando, Florida, USA = Getty Images / Multibits Photo by Multibits

For McIlroy, two goals await: his second victory and reclaiming the top spot after two years. Every emerged as a dark horse by collecting seven birdies. Interestingly, his only two PGA Tour wins came during his back-to-back victories in 2014-2015. He has a special connection with Bay Hill. His real name is 'Matt King Every,' and he incorporated the nickname 'King' of his idol Arnold Palmer, who founded this tournament, into his full name, adding a unique story.

'Honda Classic champion' Im Sung-jae (22) remained tied for 19th at 2 under par. His iron shot green hit rate dropped sharply to 50%, leading to a tough round where he exchanged a birdie at the 6th hole (par 5) for a bogey at the 9th hole (par 4). His consecutive birdies at the 12th and 13th holes were a highlight. He recovered from a bogey at the 14th hole (par 3) with a birdie at the 15th hole (par 5). He is five strokes behind the leader, still in a good position to challenge for back-to-back wins. He is relying on an average of 1.56 'stingy putts.'

An Byeong-hoon (29) is tied for 31st at 1 under par, while Lee Kyung-hoon (29) and Kim Si-woo (25, both CJ Logistics) are tied for 45th at even par. Lee Kyung-hoon was especially fortunate to play alongside McIlroy after stepping in as a replacement following the withdrawal of defending champion Francesco Molinari (Italy). Since the groupings were already finalized, he inherited Molinari's tee time. He will also be in the same group for the second round. 'Number 2' Brooks Koepka (USA) joined the group tied for 45th.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.