The First Look: Shriners Children’s Open

Fresh off his impressive Presidents Cup performance, Sungjae Im looks to defend his title at the Shriners Children’s Open as the PGA TOUR heads west for its annual stop in Las Vegas. FIELD NOTES: 2021 FedExCup champion Patrick Cantlay, No. 4 on the Official World Golf Ranking, is set to tee it up … Cantlay’s Presidents Cup teammate Max Homa returns to action … Tom Kim, who electrified the golf world at the Presidents Cup with his spirit in representing the International Team, will compete at TPC Summerlin … Twelve players ranked inside the top 50 in the world will head to Vegas … Joining Kim and Sungjae Im from the Presidents Cup’s International Team are Cam Davis, Si Woo Kim, K.H. Lee, Mito Pereira, Taylor Pendrith and Christiaan Bezuidenhout … Five major champions are set to play … More than a dozen players with connections to Las Vegas are ready to roll the dice, including UNLV alums and recent Korn Ferry Tour grads Harry Hall and Taylor Montgomery … Sponsor exemptions include Charley Hoffman and Thomas Detry, who shared the 36-hole lead at the Sanderson Farms Championship … Other sponsor exemptions include rising stars Chris Gotterup, Cole Hammer, Quinn Riley and Patrick Welch … Jason Day returns to action in Vegas. He’s played the event only once before (missing the cut two years ago) … Martin Laird, who won in 2009 and 2020, is looking for some more magic in Las Vegas. FEDEXCUP: Winner receives 500 FedExCup points. COURSE: TPC Summerlin, par 71, 7,255 yards. A staple venue on the PGA TOUR’s schedule, TPC Summerlin will once again challenge the TOUR’s best with lush bentgrass greens, numerous water features, and a layout that boasts raw landscape features and meanders through arroyos and canyons. Last year, Sungjae Im dominated the Bobby Weed design (with Fuzzy Zoeller as player consultant) with an impressive display of ball-striking; he ranked No. 1 in both greens in regulation and Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green. 72-HOLE RECORD: 260, Ryan Moore (2012), Webb Simpson (2013), Sungjae Im (2021) 18-HOLE RECORD: 59, Chip Beck (Round 3, 1991 at Sunrise GC). TPC Summerlin record: 60, J.J. Henry (Round 1, 2013), Rod Pampling (Round 1, 2016) STORYLINES: Patrick Cantlay has hit the jackpot at TPC Summerlin. The 2021 TOUR Player of the Year feasts on the Vegas layout, having finished first in 2017, runner-up in 2018 and 2019, and eighth in 2020 … Max Homa, meanwhile, is hoping to change his luck in Vegas. This is his sixth start at TPC Summerlin, and he has four missed cuts. Homa is, however, coming into the week off a perfect 4-0-0 week at the Presidents Cup after a win at the Fortinet Championship to open the 2022-23 TOUR season … Despite the International Team’s Presidents Cup loss, there was lots of positive momentum coming from that team room in Charlotte. LAST TIME: Sungjae Im fired a tremendous 9-under 62 in the closing round to rip to a tournament scoring record-tying 24 under and win by four shots. Im’s final round was highlighted by seven birdies in an eight-hole stretch around the turn at TPC Summerlin. Im was one of four players who had at least a share of the lead on the first nine Sunday in Las Vegas but separated himself from the pack with an impressive effort into the back nine. Funny enough, Im’s first victory came in his 50th TOUR start while his second, the Shriners, came in his 100th. Im’s final-round 62 was the lowest by a winner in Las Vegas since Smylie Kaufman fired a 61 in 2016. Matthew Wolff finished runner-up while Marc Leishman, Rory Sabbatini and Adam Schenk finished tied for third. Sabbatini shot a front-nine 28 Sunday and was briefly tied for the lead but couldn’t keep the pedal down as he made the turn. HOW TO FOLLOW Television: Thursday-Sunday, 5 p.m.-8 p.m. ET. Saturday, Sunday, 4 p.m.-7 p.m. Radio: Thursday-Friday, 2 p.m.–8 p.m. ET. Saturday-Sunday, 3 p.m.-8 p.m. (PGA TOUR Radio on SiriusXM and PGATOUR.com/liveaudio) For outside of the U.S., click here for GOLFTV powered by the PGA TOUR PGA TOUR LIVE PGA TOUR Live is available exclusively on ESPN+ • Featured Groups: traditional PGA TOUR LIVE coverage of two concurrent featured groups

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