Sungjae Im Cruises "2 Under Par for Two Consecutive Days"... Wise Leads by 3 Shots

Honda Classic Day 2: Scott Tied 16th, Hogi and Jones Tied 2nd, An Byeonghun and Lee Kyounghoon 'Cut Off'

Im Sung-jae (right) and Rickie Fowler are playing together on the 11th hole green on the second day of the Honda Classic. Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA = Getty Images / Multibits Photo by Getty Images

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] Defending champion Im Sung-jae (23, CJ Logistics) is sailing smoothly.

On the 20th (Korean time), at the PGA National Golf Club in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA (par 70, 6,966 yards), during the second day of the PGA Tour Honda Classic (total prize money $7 million), he added 2 under par to stand tied for 16th place (4 under par, 136 strokes). Aaron Wise is leading (12 under par, 128 strokes), while Brandon Hagy (both USA) and Matt Jones (Australia) are in a chase battle tied for 2nd place, 3 strokes behind (9 under par, 131 strokes).

Im Sung-jae started tied for 15th place, 7 strokes behind, and recorded 4 birdies and 2 bogeys. He struggled to reduce his score with 1 birdie and 2 bogeys over 11 holes, but improved his ranking with consecutive birdies on holes 3 and 4, followed by a birdie on the final 9th hole (par 4). His average driving distance of 299.7 yards and fairway hit rate of 71.43% stood out. He is 8 strokes behind the leader. He achieved his first victory last year and is aiming for a consecutive win for the first time in 43 years this year.

Aaron Wise is teeing off on the 4th hole on the second day of the Honda Classic. Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA = Getty Images / Multivitz Photo by Multivitz

Wise dominated the leaderboard with 2 eagles, 5 birdies, and 3 bogeys. He powered his game with an impressive average driving distance of 318.7 yards. He is a player who won once at the 2018 AT&T Byron Nelson. Hagy surged with 8 under par to join the race for the championship, while Jones, who was the leader the previous day, faltered with an even par. Sam Ryder (USA) is in 4th place (8 under par, 132 strokes), and Shane Lowry (Ireland) among four players tied for 5th place (7 under par, 133 strokes).

Adam Scott (Australia) is tied for 16th, Ricky Fowler (USA) tied for 31st (2 under par, 138 strokes), and Phil Mickelson (USA) tied for 42nd (1 under par, 139 strokes). From Korea, Noh Seung-yul (30) posted a somewhat chaotic scorecard with 2 eagles, 2 birdies, 6 bogeys, and 1 double bogey. Losing 2 strokes, he failed to advance to the final round, tied for 69th place (2 over par, 142 strokes). An Byeong-hun and Lee Kyung-hoon (both 30), Kang Sung-hoon (34, CJ Logistics), and Choi Kyung-ju (51, SK Telecom) were also cut off.

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