Two South Korean players have qualified for the final playoff event of the PGA Tour, with one having extended his appearance streak to six while the other is about to make his debut.
Im Sung-jae and An Byeong-hun stayed safely inside the top 30 in the FedEx Cup points standings following the conclusion of the second playoff event, the BMW Championship, at Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, Colorado, on Sunday (local time).
In this Getty Images photo, Im Sung-jae of South Korea tees off on the second hole during the third round of the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, Colorado, on Aug. 24, 2024. (Yonhap)
In this Getty Images photo, Im Sung-jae of South Korea tees off on the second hole during the third round of the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, Colorado, on Aug. 24, 2024. (Yonhap)
With that, they will both play at the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club in Atlanta, starting Thursday. There is no official money at stake, but the winner will rec
eive a US$25 million bonus, along with a five-year PGA Tour exemption.
Im entered the BMW Championship at No. 10 and fell to No. 11 after tying for 11th at Castle Pines at six-under 282. He shot one-under 71 on Sunday.
An was in 15th place in FedEx Cup points and ended up in 16th place after finishing the BMW Championship at five-under 283, good for a nine-way tie for 13th.
Im will be playing in his sixth consecutive Tour Championship, and he has extended his own record by a South Korean player under the current playoff format, which dates to 2007. An will be playing in the big event for the first time.
One other South Korean in action, Kim Si-woo, made a push but ultimately fell short, going from 44th to 32nd after shooting an eight-under 280 to tie for fifth at the BMW Championship.
In this Getty Images photo, An Byeong-hun of South Korea tees off on the fourth hole during the third round of the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, Colorado, on Aug. 24, 2024. (Yonhap)
In this Get
ty Images photo, An Byeong-hun of South Korea tees off on the fourth hole during the third round of the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, Colorado, on Aug. 24, 2024. (Yonhap)
It hurt Kim’s cause that three players cracked the top 30 after sitting on the outside looking in with their strong performances at Castle Pines, including the winner, Keegan Bradley of the United States. Bradley qualified for this tournament right on the number at No. 50 but will head to the Tour Championship at No. 4.
Under the starting stroke system unique to the Tour Championship, the FedEx Cup points leader, Scottie Scheffler of the United States, will begin the tournament at 10-under, while fellow American and No. 2 overall, Xander Schauffele, will start at eight-under.
Players ranked 11th to 15th will start at three-under, and Im falls in this group. Those ranked 16th to 20th, including An, will begin at two-under.
Source: Yonhap News Agency