Sungjae Im Starts 7th at 4-Under Par "Energy Recharge Effect"... Simpson Leads

WGC Series Workday Championship Day 1: Kepka Tied 3rd, Rahm Tied 7th, Johnson Tied 64th "Troubled Tee Shots"

Im Sung-jae is teeing off on the 18th hole on the first day of the Workday Championship. Bradenton, Florida, USA = Getty Images / Multivits Photo by Multivits

[Asia Economy Kim Hyun-jun, Golf Specialist Reporter] "Energy recharge effect."

World ranking 17th Im Sung-jae (23, CJ Logistics) is off to a good start. On the 26th (Korean time), at the World Golf Championships (WGC) Workday Championship (total prize money $10.5 million) held at the Concession Golf Club in Bradenton, Florida, USA (par 72, 7,474 yards), he shot 4 under par on the first day to tie for 7th place. Webb Simpson (USA) and Matthew Fitzpatrick (England) lead the tournament at 6 under par, while Brooks Koepka (USA) is chasing in a tie for 3rd place, one stroke behind at 5 under par (67 strokes).

Im Sung-jae took a sweet break for the first time in two weeks. This came after participating in five consecutive tournaments starting from the 2021 season opener, the Sentry Tournament. Notably, he showed consistency by making the cut in all five tournaments, including a tie for 5th place at the Sentry Tournament. This time, he started serious physical conditioning with a newly hired personal trainer and worked on improving his short game and other relatively weak areas through practice rounds.

On this day, he recorded six birdies and two bogeys. It is interesting that Im Sung-jae demonstrated stable performance with an actual fairway hit rate of 78.57%, green in regulation rate of 77.78%, and an average of 1.64 putts per hole, showing his 'stingy putting.' He succeeded in an early spurt with consecutive birdies on holes 2 and 3, and accelerated with a birdie on the 5th hole (par 4). On the 5th hole, he even sank a long 8.5-meter putt. After exchanging two birdies and two bogeys, he finished with a birdie on the 17th hole (par 5) with a '2-on 2-putt.'

'Phinis Open Champ' Brooks Koepka is examining the putting line on the 5th hole on the first day of the Workday Championship. Bradenton, Florida, USA = Getty Images / Multibits Photo by Getty Images

Locally, the spotlight is on Koepka’s 'march to a second win' after his victory at the Waste Management Phoenix Open on the 7th, signaling a comeback mode. Billy Horschel and Kevin Kisner (both USA), and Sergio Garcia (Spain) joined the tie for 3rd place. 'Number 2' Jon Rahm (Spain) is positioned in a tie for 7th place alongside Im Sung-jae, and defending champion Patrick Reed (USA) is also dreaming of defending his title from the tie for 7th group.

Tony Finau and Xander Schauffele (both USA) are challenging to break the 'second-place jinx' from their respective positions of tied 7th and 1 under par tied 25th. Finau has been frustrated by finishing second consecutively at the Farmers Open on the 31st of last month and the Genesis Invitational on the 22nd, while Schauffele has been stuck in second place at the Farmers Open and Phoenix Open. Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) is tied for 13th at 3 under par, and 'Number 3' Justin Thomas (USA) is struggling at tied 44th with 1 over par.

The struggles of 'WGC slammer' Dustin Johnson (USA) are surprising. He swept four different WGC series events: the 2013 HSBC Champions, the 2015 edition of this tournament (then Cadillac Championship), the 2016 Bridgestone Invitational, and the 2017 March Dell Technologies Match Play. This tournament, in particular, has been his 'winning stronghold,' having won three times in the past six years (2015, 2017, and 2019). However, on this day, his tee shots faltered, and he finished tied for 64th at 5 over par.

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