On the Second Day of John Deere Classic, a 5-Under Par Surge Jumps 23 Spots; K.J. Choi and Seong-Hoon Kang Are 'Cut Off'
No Seung-yeol is watching the ball immediately after his tee shot on the 2nd hole of the second day of the John Deere Classic. Silvis, USA = Getty Images / Multibits Photo by Multibits
[Asia Economy Golf Specialist Reporter Kim Hyun-jun] "47th → 24th."
‘Reservist’ No Seung-yeol (32) has finally gathered strength. On the 2nd (Korean time), at the John Deere Classic (total prize money $7.1 million) held at TPC Deere Run in Silvis, Illinois, USA (par 71, 7,268 yards), he shot 5-under par on the second day to take a tie for 24th place (6-under par 136). The 5-under par was his first in five months since the third round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am in February. He relied on a maximum 359-yard long drive and a green hit rate of 94.44%, powered by his ‘computer iron shots.’
No Seung-yeol is a player who has represented the national team and won the 2008 Asian Tour Media China and the 2010 DP World Tour (European Tour) Maybank Malaysia. He crossed over to the U.S. in 2012 through the 2011 PGA Tour Qualifying (Q) School and rose to champion status at the Zurich Classic in April 2014. At that time, he became the fourth Korean player in history to win a PGA Tour event, following ‘Tank’ Choi Kyung-ju (52, SK Telecom), Yang Yong-eun (50), and Bae Sang-moon (36).
He enlisted in November 2017 and completed 1 year and 8 months of active reservist duty before being discharged in August 2019. Unfortunately, he has lacked presence since his return in 2020. Out of 8 events, he missed the cut five times, and last year, he missed the cut four times in 6 events. This year, in 17 events, he has yet to achieve a ‘top 10’ finish. His tee shot accuracy (fairway hit rate 50.37%, ranked 196th) has declined, showing signs of struggle. However, on this day, he recorded 6 birdies and 1 bogey. The bogey on the final 18th hole (par 4) was rather regrettable.
J.T. Poston remains the leader (15-under par 127). Holding the top of the leaderboard for two consecutive days with 9-under par and 6-under par rounds, he is aiming to avenge his runner-up finish at the Travelers Championship that ended on the 26th. Denny McCarthy (both from the U.S.) is in 2nd place (11-under par 131), and Emiliano Grillo (Argentina) is tied for 3rd (10-under par 132), engaged in a tough chase. Koreans Choi Kyung-ju and Kang Sung-hoon (35, CJ Logistics) both missed the cut.
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