'Shriners Champ' Im Sung-jae "4-Under Start"... Streb "Did You See 11-Under in a Day?"

PGA Tour 2021/2022 Season Round 4 The CJ Cup Day 1 Tied 26th, Lee Kyung-hoon Excitingly Tied 15th at 5 Under Par

Im Sung-jae is teeing off during the first round of The CJ Cup. Las Vegas, USA = Getty Images / Photo by Multibits

[Asia Economy Golf Specialist Reporter Kim Hyun-jun] ‘Shriners Champ’ Im Sung-jae (23) has started his ‘march for a second consecutive win.’

On the 15th (Korean time), at The Summit Golf Club in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA (par 72, 7,431 yards), the fourth event of the 2021/2022 PGA Tour season, The CJ Cup (total prize money $9.75 million), began. Im tied for 26th place at 4 under par on the first day. Robert Streb surged to a surprising lead with 11 under par, followed by Keith Mitchell one stroke behind in second place (10 under par, 62 strokes), and Harry Higgs (both from the USA) in third place (8 under par, 64 strokes) chasing closely.

Im Sung-jae secured his first win of the new season early at the Shriners Children's Open, which ended on the 11th. The motivation was heightened as it was a sponsor’s tournament. On this day, he recorded five birdies and one bogey. His tee shot on the 4th hole (par 4) landed in a fairway bunker, resulting in a bogey, but he sparked momentum with three consecutive birdies from the 5th to 7th holes, and added two more birdies on the 11th and 14th holes in the back nine. Especially on the 11th hole (par 3), he made a ‘hole-in-one-like birdie’ by landing his tee shot very close to the hole.

His ‘needle-like iron shots’ stood out, with a maximum drive of 327 yards and missing the green only twice. However, Im’s wrist condition is a variable. He explained, “I felt stiffness at the driving range this morning,” adding, “I’m conscious of it during the backswing, and during impact, my left wrist is not able to support properly.” He expressed confidence, saying, “The start is good,” and added his determination, “I will rest and calmly prepare for the second round.”

Robert Streb is preparing for a shot on the 17th hole on the first day of The CJ Cup. Las Vegas, USA = Getty Images / Multibits

Streb made an eagle with a ‘2-on 1-putt’ on the 3rd hole (par 5) and collected 10 birdies (with one bogey). He is a player who earned his second career win after a playoff battle with Kevin Kisner (USA) at the RSM Classic in November 2020, which was included in the 2021 season. Following his first win in 2014 (then the McGladrey Classic), he earned his second win at the same tournament six years later, drawing more spotlight. The leaders are followed by Masters champion Hideki Matsuyama (Japan), tied for 7th at 6 under par.

World stars such as 2018 champion Brooks Koepka and Collin Morikawa (both USA) are tied for 15th at 5 under par, seemingly still tuning their shot senses. Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland) joined the tie for 26th place, 2019 champion Justin Thomas is tied for 39th at 3 under par, and world No. 2 Dustin Johnson remained tied for 73rd at 2 over par. It is interesting that defending champion Jason Kokrak (USA) fell to 78th place at 5 over par.

Korea’s Lee Kyung-hoon (30) is performing well, tied for 15th at 5 under par. He fired up his fighting spirit, saying, “Streb’s 11 under par is amazing, but I will stay calm and focus on my game.” The ‘19-year-old young guns’ Kim Joo-hyung and Kim Sung-hyun (23, Bizplay) are tied for 26th, Lee Jae-kyung (22) and Kim Min-kyu (20) tied for 39th, An Byeong-hoon (30) tied for 49th at 2 under par, Kim Si-woo (26), Kang Sung-hoon (34), and Shin Sang-hoon (23) tied for 56th at 1 under par, and Seo Yo-seop (25, DB Insurance) and Kim Han-byul (25, SK Telecom) tied for 73rd.