'Master of Finishing Rush' Im Sungjae... 'Have You Seen Three Consecutive Three-Birdie Streaks?'

Genesis Scottish Open 1R 7 Under Par 2nd Place
Thomas Leads, McIlroy and An Byeonghun Tied 8th
Lee Jeonghwan 34th, Kim Siwoo 58th, Kim Juhyung 77th

Im Sung-jae showcased the essence of a 'strong finish' during his Scotland expedition.

Im Sung-jae

On the 11th (local time), at the Renaissance Club (par 70, 7,237 yards) in North Berwick, Scotland, during the first round of the Genesis Scottish Open, a PGA Tour and DP World Tour event with a total prize of $9 million, Im shot a 7-under 63 to sit in second place. Justin Thomas (USA), who has accumulated 15 PGA Tour wins, recorded an 8-under 62, leading by one stroke.

Im recorded nine birdies and two bogeys. Although he started shakily with a bogey on the 1st hole (par 4), he energized himself with three consecutive birdies from holes 2 to 4. He then secured two more sets of three consecutive birdies on holes 8 to 10 and 14 to 16, propelling himself into the leading group. On the 17th hole (par 3), after missing the green with his tee shot, he made a bogey. His putting was outstanding. When he reached the green in regulation, his average putts per hole were 1.42 (tied for 3rd). He seized the opportunity for his first win of the year and the third PGA Tour victory of his career.

In a post-round interview, Im said, "The weather helped. Fortunately, there was no wind. It didn’t significantly affect my shots and putting accuracy." In his previous two appearances at this tournament, he never scored under par and missed the cut both times. He explained, "The course was too difficult for me, so I didn’t have high expectations. Even today, I made a bogey on the first hole, but a chip-in birdie on the 2nd hole (par 4) changed the momentum."

World No. 2 and defending champion Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) started brightly, tied for 8th place (5-under 65). He said, "My game today was flawless," and added, "The weather was good. I hope it gets windier and the course becomes tougher without rain." An Byeong-hoon, a 'Paris Olympic member' who finished tied for 3rd last year, also joined this group. Domestic players Lee Jeong-hwan tied for 34th (3-under 67), Kim Si-woo tied for 58th (2-under 68), and Kim Joo-hyung and Park Sang-hyun finished tied for 77th (1-under 68) after the first round.

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