Kim Si-woo's Excitement "Tied 4th, 2 Shots Behind"... Kokrak and 3 Others Share Lead

6-Under Par on Day One of the Sony Open: Kang Sung-hoon and Morikawa at 4-Under Par, Choi Kyung-ju and Defending Champ Smith Start at 3-Under Par

Kim Si-woo is teeing off at the 17th hole on the first day of the Sony Open. Honolulu (Hawaii, USA) = Getty Images / Multibits Photo by Getty Images

[Asia Economy Reporter No Woo-rae] It is the excitement of Kim Si-woo (26, representing CJ Logistics).

On the 15th (Korean time), at the Sony Open (total prize money $6.6 million) held at Waialae Golf Club (par 70, 7,044 yards) in Honolulu, Hawaii, USA, Kim shot 6-under par on the first day to tie for 4th place. Jason Kokrak and Peter Malnati (both from the USA), Joaquin Niemann (Chile) are tied for the lead (8-under par 62), while Ben Taylor, Jim Herman (both USA), and Aaron Baddeley (Australia) are tied for 4th. This is the first full-field stage of 2021.

Kim Si-woo delivered a flawless performance with six birdies and no bogeys. Starting at the 10th hole, he gained momentum with his first birdie at the 14th hole (both par 4), followed by consecutive birdies at the 18th and 1st holes. After back-to-back birdies at the 3rd and 4th holes, he added a birdie at the final 9th hole (par 5) to join the race for the championship. He relied on his long drives averaging 312.2 yards and his pinpoint iron shots with a green hit rate of 83.33%. He is two strokes behind the co-leaders and has a chance for his third career win in his first outing of the new year.

Kokrak swept up eight birdies to dominate the top of the leaderboard. He is the player who won his first title in 233 tournaments over eight years at The CJ Cup last October. World No. 5 Collin Morikawa (USA) started comfortably, tied for 23rd place (4-under par 66). Defending champion Cameron Smith (Australia) is tied for 40th (3-under par 67), and last week's season opener winner Harris English (USA) is tied for 99th (even par 70).

The Korean contingent sees Kang Sung-hoon (34, CJ Logistics) joining the tie for 23rd, eyeing a rise to the top ranks. 2008 champion Choi Kyung-ju (51, SK Telecom) is tied for 40th, Im Sung-jae (23, CJ Logistics) tied for 55th (2-under par 68), and sponsor invitees Yang Yong-eun (49) and Lee Kyung-hoon (30, CJ Logistics) are tied for 72nd (1-under par 69). Korean Professional Golf Association (KPGA) Korean Tour member Heo In-hoi (34), who passed Monday's qualifier, struggled at tied 115th (1-over par 71).