'War of Money' Tour Championship... Im Sung-jae, Tied 6th in 1R, 'Smooth Sailing'

First Korean Player to Compete in '4 Consecutive' Tournaments
7-Under Par on Day One... 8 Strokes Behind Leader
'Sole Leader' Scheffler at 15-Under Par

Im Sung-jae is teeing off at the 3rd hole during the first round of the Tour Championship, the final event of the PGA Tour. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hee-jun Jang] In the final battle of the "War of Money" with 100 billion won at stake, Im Sung-jae (24) showed a smooth start.

On the 25th (local time), Im Sung-jae recorded 7-under par on the first day of the Tour Championship, the final round of the PGA Tour FedEx Cup Playoffs (PO), held at East Lake Golf Club (par 70) in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. He is tied for 6th place with Cameron Smith (Australia) and Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland). He trails the leader, Scottie Scheffler (USA, 15-under par), by 8 strokes.

Im Sung-jae has participated in the Tour Championship for four consecutive years, the first Korean player to do so. This season, he ranked 10th in the FedEx Cup standings and started with a bonus score of "4-under par." In the first round, he made 4 birdies and 1 bogey, reducing his score by 3 strokes. Smith and McIlroy also finished the first day with 3-under par.

The FedEx Cup champion will receive $18 million (approximately 24.2 billion won). However, the final round features a variable where stroke advantages are given differentially to top-ranked players based on the FedEx Cup rankings. Since the 1st place starts with 10-under par, it is not easy for lower-ranked players to overturn the results. Players ranked 26th to 30th do not receive any bonus strokes.

Lee Kyung-hoon (31), who entered the tournament ranked 26th, started even par. Although it is his first time participating in the Tour Championship and the challenge is tough, he dreams of an upset. In the first round, he made 6 birdies and 4 bogeys, placing him tied for 22nd (2-under par).

While Scheffler, who started with a 10-stroke advantage as the No. 1 ranked player, maintained the lead, second place Xander Schauffele (USA, 10-under par) chased him by 5 strokes. Defending champion Patrick Cantlay (USA) started with a bonus of 8-under par but dropped to a tie for 4th place with even par on the first day.

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