Im Sung-jae and Kim Si-woo finished the first round of the PGA Tour playoff finale in a tie for 25th place. The event took place on August 15th at Caves Valley Golf Club in Owings Mills, Maryland, USA.

Im carded a 1-over-par 71, collecting two birdies and three bogeys. He faltered with a bogey on the second hole after missing the green in regulation, but recovered with a birdie on the fourth. An 8.2-meter eagle putt narrowly missed its mark, leaving potential strokes on the green.

After failing to save par on the 12th, Im bounced back with a birdie on the 13th. However, another bogey followed on the 14th. He then closed out the final four holes with pars, wrapping up the day at one-over.

Only the top 30 players in FedEx Cup points after this playoff event will qualify for the final PGA Tour Championship. Im is currently in 25th place and must protect his ranking over the remaining rounds. If he succeeds, he will reach the Championship for the seventh consecutive year.

Meanwhile, Kim Si-woo, who started the playoffs ranked 41st in the FedEx Cup standings, also posted a 1-over-par 71. He tallied four birdies, three bogeys, and a costly double bogey on the back nine. Kim began strongly, making the turn at one-under, and reaching two-under through 15 holes. However, missteps at the finish proved costly; a poor tee shot led to a bogey on the 17th, and back-to-back missed attempts to escape the rough resulted in a double bogey on the par-5 18th.

On day one, Robert MacIntyre of Scotland shot a stunning 8-under-par 62 to claim the solo lead. England’s Tommy Fleetwood followed with a 5-under, while world number one Scottie Scheffler closed birdie-birdie-birdie over his last four holes to sit third at 4-under.

Three-under 67s placed Viktor Hovland (Norway), Ben Griffin, and Rickie Fowler (both USA) in a tie for fourth. Five players, including Korean American Michael Kim, finished at two-under to share seventh place. World number two Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland shot an even-par 70, landing in a tie for 15th.

Out of the 49 participants, Bud Cauley (USA) was the only player unable to complete his round due to darkness. He stood at one-under through 17 holes and will resume play at the 18th before starting round two on August 16th.

Note “This article was translated from the original Korean version using AI assistance, and subsequently edited by a native-speaking journalist.”

Photo=Yonhap News Agency