Eight South Korean golfers, including Kim Ju-hyung (21, Nike Golf) and Lim Sung-jae (25, CJ Logistics), will compete in the Genesis Scottish Open.
The tournament, co-hosted by the U.S. Professional Golfers Association (PGA) Tour and the European Tour, DP World Tour, will be held at The Renaissance Club (Par 70, 7237 yards) in North Berwick, Scotland, U.K., for four days from Sept. 13 (local time). The total purse is $9 million.
The Genesis Scottish Open is the first co-produced event under the strategic alliance between the PGA Tour and DP World Tour. It is also a member of the Rolex Series, the top five events on the DP World Tour.
The tournament is a prelude to The Open at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Wirral, England, which will take place over the next 20 days and will feature many of the world’s top players.
Eight of the top 10 players in the world will be competing, including World No. 1 Scott Schauffler (USA), No. 3 Rory McIlroy (GBR), No. 4 Patrick Cantlay and No. 6 Xander Schauffele (USA). Of these, Shofley will be defending his title.
The Korean field includes five PGA Tour players in Kim Joo-hyung and Lim Sung-jae, as well as Lee Kyung-hoon (32-CJ Logistics), Kim Sung-hyun (25-Shinhan Financial Group) and Ahn Byung-hoon (32-CJ Logistics), and three Korean Professional Golf (KPGA) Tour players in Kim Young-soo (34-Dongmun Construction), Kim Bio (33-Hoban Construction) and Seo Yo-seop (27-DB Insurance).
Kim Joo-hyung will be looking to repeat his victory from last year’s tournament, where he was tied for the lead heading into the final round before bogeying the last 18 holes to finish in sole possession of third place.메이저사이트
After missing the cut last year, Im Seong-jae, Kim Biao and Lee Kyung-hoon will be looking to redeem themselves.
In particular, Lim has yet to win this season, but he has seven top-10 finishes and is expected to finish in the top 10.
Kim Bi-Oh plays a driver tee shot on the 10th hole of the ‘SK Telecom Charity Open with American Express’ tournament at Finks Golf Club in Jeju Island on Sunday. (Courtesy of the KPGA) 2023.5.17/News1
Players will have to overcome the vagaries of the weather to get the results they want. The links golf course where the tournament will be held is located on the coast, which means there are many weather variables, including wind and gusts.
The PGA Tour warns on its website, “Wind and gusts will be strong. Rain is also not ruled out, so it will be a tough challenge for the players.”
The course is also challenging. Three of the 10 par-4s were among the top 15 toughest on the PGA Tour last season. The fairways and greens are firm, requiring players to calculate the distance and direction of their putts.
The unfamiliarity of the course has Korean golfers worried even before the tournament.
“Unlike the U.S., this course is very windy, so I have to be prepared,” said Lim Sung-jae in a recent video interview with Korean reporters. “Here, I have to hit with a low trajectory, which is a bit of a disadvantage for me, who has a high trajectory.”
Kim Biao and Kim Young-soo also agreed, saying, “I think fighting the wind will be the most important thing.”
However, they have already studied the course and are determined to overcome it and perform well.
“It’s hard to match the distance of my iron shots, but I’ll do my best to prepare,” said Lim, “I hope to make the cut and then finish in the top 10, top 5, or even win.”
“If I can adapt and get used to the course, I think I can do much better than last year,” said Kim.