Kim Juhyung Tied 5th, Im Sungjae Tied 7th in 'Chasing Battle'

New Year's 'King of Kings' TOC Day 3 'Victory Battle'
Morikawa Leads, Scheffler and Fitzpatrick Tied for 2nd

Kim Joo-hyung is teeing off at the 9th hole on the third day of the Sentry Tournament of Champions. Hawaii=AFP·Yonhap News

‘PGA star attraction’ Kim Joo-hyung continued his pursuit of the championship.

On the 7th (local time), Kim Joo-hyung posted a 5-under-par round on the third day of the Sentry Tournament of Champions (TOC, total prize money $15 million), the first event of the 2022/2023 PGA Tour season, held at the Kapalua Plantation Course (par 73, 7,596 yards) on Maui Island, Hawaii, USA. He stood tied for 5th place at 17-under-par 202 strokes. This ‘champion of champions’ event featured only 39 top-ranked players, including last season’s winners, with a first-place prize of $2.7 million (approximately 3.4 billion KRW).

Starting tied for 5th place, 4 strokes behind the leader, Kim carded one eagle, five birdies, and two bogeys. After a bogey on the 4th hole (par 4), he immediately recovered with a birdie on the 5th hole (par 5), followed by consecutive birdies on the 8th and 9th holes, another birdie on the 11th hole (par 3), and an eagle on the 15th hole (par 5) with a ‘2-on 1-putt’ to build momentum. Although a bogey on the 16th hole (par 4) slowed him down, he changed the atmosphere with a birdie on the final 18th hole (par 5). He trails the leader by 7 strokes, making a strong final day push necessary.

Collin Morikawa (USA) maintained his lead on the leaderboard for the third consecutive day by shooting an impressive 8-under-par, standing at 24-under-par 195 strokes. World No. 2 Scottie Scheffler (USA) shot 4-under-par to tie for 2nd place at 18-under-par 201 strokes. If he finishes solo 3rd or better, he will reclaim the No. 1 ranking. Matt Fitzpatrick (England) surged to a tie for 2nd place with a 7-under-par round. Jon Rahm (Spain) is tied for 5th, and Max Homa (USA) is tied for 7th at 16-under-par 203 strokes.

From Korea, Im Sung-jae recorded one eagle and six birdies without any bogeys, tying for 7th place. Lee Kyung-hoon improved by 6 strokes to move up to a tie for 9th place at 15-under-par 204 strokes. 2016 champion Jordan Spieth is also tied for 9th, while 2017 and 2020 champion Justin Thomas (both USA) are tied for 19th at 12-under-par 207 strokes.