World No.1 Johnson Takes Off in 'Star Wars'... What About Defending Champ Scott?

At the Genesis Invitational: "Marching to 2 Wins," Showplee and DeChambeau Join, Kang Seonghun's "Revenge Match," Kim Taehoon’s "Big League Challenge"

World No. 1 Dustin Johnson challenges for his second win of the season at the Genesis Invitational.

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] ‘Star Wars’.

The return of world No. 1 Dustin Johnson (USA). The Genesis Invitational of the PGA Tour (total prize money $9.3 million), opening on the night of the 18th (Korean time) at Riviera Golf Club in Pacific Palisades, California (par 71, 7,322 yards), is a fierce battleground. World stars including No. 2 Jon Rahm (Spain) and No. 3 Justin Thomas (USA) have all gathered, and ‘The Hulk’ Bryson DeChambeau (USA) has joined, heating up the competition.

▲ Johnson "Aiming for 2 Wins" = This tournament is also hosted by the Tiger Woods Foundation. Last year, it was elevated to an ‘Invitational’ event, increasing the total prize money by $1.9 million, and awarding the winner a 3-year tour exemption, instantly making it a premier match. Johnson is naturally the ‘top favorite to win.’ He achieved 4 wins including 3 in the 2020 season and 1 in the 2021 season, and in the playoffs (PO) from August to September, he posted an astonishing record of ‘win - runner-up - win’ in three tournaments.

The highlight was the November ‘Fall Masters.’ Starting the final day with a 4-stroke lead, he added 4 under par to complete the lowest winning score ever (20 under par, 268 strokes). For Johnson, it was especially meaningful as he overcame the pain of losing all four times he started the final day of a major as the leader or co-leader. This year, he also demonstrated his ‘No. 1 power’ to the world by winning the European Tour’s Saudi International, which ended on the 7th.

Adam Scott defended his title at the Genesis Invitational.

▲ Scott ‘Title Defense’, DeChambeau "Long Drive Experiment Ongoing" = Adam Scott (Australia) is the defending champion. He secured a 2-stroke victory last year, reaching his 14th career win for the first time in 4 years since the Cadillac Championship in March 2016, making this his ‘promised land.’ After that, he went through a slump with no top 20 finishes in 11 tournaments, but fortunately entered ‘revival mode’ with a tie for 10th at the Farmers Open that ended on the 1st. He attracted even more spotlight by using the domestic company Doomina’s ‘Auto Flex’ shaft.

Xander Schauffele (USA), who finished runner-up consecutively at the Farmers Open and Phoenix Open, is aiming for ‘third time’s the charm.’ Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) is another contender. Locally, DeChambeau’s ‘long drive experiment’ remains newsworthy. Last year, he gained 18 kg in weight as a ‘bulk-up effect,’ and emerged as the PGA Tour’s top long hitter, increasing his average drive from 302.5 yards (34th) in 2019 to 322.1 yards (1st) in 2020, and 329.2 yards (1st) in 2021.

Kim Tae-hoon earned the opportunity to participate in the PGA Tour last year as the winner of the Korean Tour Genesis Championship.

▲ Kang Sung-hoon ‘Revenge Match’, Kim Tae-hoon "Challenges PGA Tour" = Korea’s front runner is Kang Sung-hoon (34, CJ Logistics). He became a PGA Tour champion at the AT&T Byron Nelson in May 2019. The following week, he opened the possibility of winning a major by finishing 7th at the second major, the PGA Championship. It is noteworthy that he finished tied for 2nd last year. He is said to be particularly strong at Riviera. He has thrilling memories of operating an average of just 1.62 putts per round over 4 rounds, a ‘stingy putting’ performance.

Kim Si-woo (26) is a variable with his ‘rollercoaster play.’ He won the American Express on the 25th of last month, marking his third career win after 3 years and 8 months since The Players Championship, known as the ‘fifth major,’ in May 2017, but recently bowed out twice by missing the cut in three tournaments. Domestic fans are interested in Kim Tae-hoon (36, Webcash Group) participating. He earned a ticket to challenge the big league as the winner of last year’s Korean Professional Golf (KPGA) Korean Tour Genesis Championship.

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