'Number 1' Johnson "US Open Mock Test"... What About Im Sung-jae?

Tuning Real-Game Shot Sensitivity at Palmetto Championship Ahead of Major US Open, Koepka Joins, Poulter Competes for Victory

World No. 1 Dustin Johnson will take a 'mock test' at the Palmetto Championship in preparation for the US Open.

[Asia Economy Golf Specialist Reporter Kim Hyun-jun] "US Open Mock Test."

World No. 1 Dustin Johnson will compete on the night of the 10th (Korean time) at Congaree Golf Club (par 71, 7,655 yards) in South Carolina, USA, for the PGA Palmetto Championship (total prize money $7.3 million). This is to check his real-shot sense ahead of the major US Open, which begins its grand journey on the 17th. 'Number 8' Brooks Koepka (both from the USA) has also started his 'warm-up.' South Korea is represented by Im Sung-jae (23, CJ Logistics) who is accompanying them.

Johnson rested instead of participating in the Valero Texas Open just before defending his Masters title in April. However, he suffered the humiliation of missing the cut at the Masters. This means he changed his strategy. In the 2020 season, he won three times and also claimed the 'Fall Masters' postponed due to COVID-19 in November, but this year, in nine tournaments, he has only one top 10 finish and has been sluggish. A knee injury has put a brake on him. After the Masters, he missed the cut in both the May PGA Championship and other major tournaments.

For Johnson, the urgent task is to get into revival mode. This tournament was newly established to replace the RBC Canadian Open, which was canceled for two consecutive years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The RBC Canadian Open is scheduled to resume in 2022 in Toronto, Canada. The fiercely competitive Congaree Golf Club is only a two-hour drive from Johnson's hometown, Columbia, South Carolina. He called it a "great course" and declared his intention to "become the inaugural champion."

Koepka is a player to watch out for. In February, at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, he reached his 8th PGA Tour victory after 1 year and 7 months, and in March at the World Golf Championships (WGC) Workday Championship and the May PGA Championship, he consecutively finished as runner-up in top-tier matches, showing an upward trend. Experts have named Ian Poulter (England) as the 'top favorite to win.' The 'European squad,' including Tyrrell Hatton and Matthew Fitzpatrick (both from England), has also joined the competition.

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