Sungjae Im and Siwoo Kim "Tied 39th, 10 Shots Behind"... Hoblyn "Leads by 2 Shots"

Arnold Palmer Invitational Day 2: McIlroy and Hatton Tied for 2nd, 'Number 1' Rahm Tied for 13th, Lee Kyoung-hoon Tied for 51st

Im Sung-jae is hitting a fairway bunker shot on the 12th hole during the second day of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Orlando, USA = Getty Images / Multivitz

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] It is a breather for ‘Shriners Champ’ Im Sung-jae (24, CJ Logistics).

On the 5th (Korean time), at Bay Hill Golf Club in Orlando, Florida, USA (par 72, 7,466 yards), during the second day of the PGA Tour’s premium event Arnold Palmer Invitational (total prize money $12 million), Im faltered with a 5-over-par and plummeted to a tie for 39th place (1-over-par 145). World No. 3 Viktor Hovland (Norway) leads (9-under-par 135), with 2018 champion Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) and two others tied for second place (7-under-par 137).

Starting from a tie for 5th place, 3 strokes behind the leader, Im recorded 3 birdies, 6 bogeys, and 1 double bogey. Over 12 holes, he exchanged 3 birdies for 3 bogeys, struggling to lower his score. He stumbled with bogeys on the 13th and 15th holes (both par 4s), and suffered a critical double bogey on the 17th hole (par 3) after his tee shot landed in the left rough. The final 18th hole (par 4) was also a bogey. Ten strokes behind the leader, it has become difficult for him to secure his second win of the season since the Shriners Open last October.

Viktor Hovland is teeing off on the 7th hole on the second day of the Arnold Palmer Invitational. Orlando, USA = Getty Images / Multivitz Photo by Multivitz

Hovland swept up 7 birdies (1 bogey) to quickly take the top spot on the leaderboard. His shot accuracy was not great, with a fairway hit rate of 57.14% and a greens in regulation rate of 61.11%. However, his ‘stingy putting’ of 1.455 putts per hole was outstanding. Leading by 2 strokes, he is chasing his second win of the season and fourth career victory since the World Wide Technology Championship last November. McIlroy, who led the previous day, finished even par and dropped to a tie for second.

2020 champion Tyrrell Hatton (England) posted 4-under-par to rise to a tie for second place. World No. 1 Jon Rahm (Spain) added 2-under-par and is aiming for a higher position from a tie for 13th place (2-under-par 142). From Korea, Kim Si-woo (27, CJ Logistics) lost 4 strokes and fell to a tie for 39th place. Lee Kyung-hoon (31, CJ Logistics) also struggled, tied for 51st place (2-over-par 146). ‘Honda Classic Champ’ Jeb Straka (Austria) missed the cut, tied for 97th place (6-over-par 150).

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