Im Sung-jae Starts PGA Tour Playoffs 2nd Leg Round 1 Tied for 12th… McIlroy and Four Others Share Lead

Im Sung-jae, who is aiming for his eighth consecutive appearance in the final round of the PGA Tour Playoffs, has made a solid start.

Playing in the first round of the BMW Championship (total purse $20 million), the second playoff event of the PGA Tour, held at Bellerive Country Club (par 70) in St. Louis, Missouri, on August 20 (local time), Im shot 3-under 67 with five birdies and two bogeys.

He finished the day tied for 12th, three strokes behind the co-leaders.

This tournament features the top 50 players in the FedEx Cup standings, and after the event, the top 30 players in the FedEx Cup rankings will earn spots in the playoff finale, the Tour Championship (total purse $40 million).

Im, ranked 40th in the FedEx Cup standings, aims to break into the top 30 by securing a high finish in this tournament.

Im, who has advanced to the playoff finale for seven straight years through last year, will see his streak depend on his performance in this event.

On this day, Im grabbed his first birdie on the 2nd hole (par 4).

After landing his second shot 2.9 meters from the hole, he successfully converted his birdie putt.

However, Im stumbled with a bogey on the 5th hole (par 4) after missing his second shot, and recorded another bogey on the 6th hole (par 3) when his tee shot landed in a bunker.

Having finished the front nine at 1-over, Im bounced back on the back nine.

He recorded back-to-back birdies on the 10th hole (par 4) and 11th hole (par 4).

After sinking a 3.7-meter birdie putt on the 10th, he dropped a long 7.2-meter birdie putt into the cup on the 11th.

He picked up consecutive birdies again on the 14th hole (par 3) and 15th hole (par 4), finishing the first round with a score close to the top 10.

Kim Si-woo, ranked 13th in the world and 4th in the FedEx Cup standings who has already secured a spot in the playoff finale, posted an even-par 70 with four birdies and four bogeys to tie for 32nd.

He stumbled with bogeys on his opening three holes from the 1st hole (par 4) to the 3rd hole (par 3), but steadily clawed back strokes thereafter.

Kim Joo-hyung, ranked 26th in the FedEx Cup standings, struggled in a tie for 44th at 2-over 72, mixing six birdies, four bogeys, and two double bogeys.

Depending on his performance in this tournament, Kim Joo-hyung could miss out on the final round, requiring him to bounce back in the remaining rounds.

A group of five players shared the lead.

World No. 2 Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), Gary Woodland, Wyndham Clark, J.J. Spaun, and Chris Gotterup (all from the United States) placed themselves at the top of the leaderboard with matching 6-under 64s.

Ryo Hisatsune (Japan) and Matt Fitzpatrick (England) tied for sixth at 5-under 65.

A total of four players, including Ludvig Aberg (Sweden), tied for eighth at 4-under 66.

World No. 1 and FedEx St. Jude Championship winner Scottie Scheffler (United States) struggled in a tie for 44th at 2-over 72, combining three birdies and five bogeys.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.