Korn Ferry Tour Runner-up Kim Sunghyun Starts First Tournament at 5 Under Par

Tied for 8th with Lee Kyunghoon in Farmers Insurance Open 1st Round
Riding momentum after runner-up finish in Korn Ferry Tour playoff last week
Aberg leads, Im Sungjae in 29th, Kim Siwoo in 65th

Kim Sunghyun continued his upward momentum.

Kim Sunghyun

On January 22 (local time), at the Torrey Pines North Course (par 72, 7,258 yards) in San Diego, California, Kim carded a 5-under-par 67 in the first round of the PGA Tour Farmers Insurance Open (total prize money: $9.3 million), tying for eighth place alongside Lee Kyunghoon. He delivered a flawless performance, making five birdies without a single bogey. This tournament marks his first appearance on the regular tour after finishing as runner-up in a playoff at last week's Korn Ferry (secondary) Tour Bahamas Golf Classic.

This event is held across two courses. Players alternate between the Torrey Pines South Course (par 72, 7,765 yards) and the North Course for the first and second rounds. The third and fourth rounds are played exclusively on the South Course. The tournament follows an unusual schedule, beginning on Wednesday and concluding on Saturday local time. This is due to the schedule of the National Football League (NFL); the PGA Tour event ends on Saturday to avoid overlapping with the NFL's two conference championship games.

Ludvig Aberg (Sweden) surged to the top of the leaderboard with a 9-under-par 63, recording one eagle, eight birdies, and one bogey. Hideki Matsuyama (Japan), the winner of this year’s opening event The Sentry, finished tied for 18th at 4-under-par 68. Among Korean players, Im Sungjae finished tied for 29th at 3-under-par 69, while Kim Siwoo ended the first round tied for 65th at 1-under-par 71.