Tiger Woods cards best round at Riviera since 2004

Michelle Wie West now has a little one of her own.

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GREENSBORO, N.C. – Sungjae Im came to the Wyndham Championship as the highest-ranking rookie in the FedExCup (25). Without winning, he nevertheless had people talking. Now he really has them talking. With a second-round 67 at soggy Sedgefield Country Club, Im was tied with Patton Kizzire (64) and Adam Svensson (61) atop the leaderboard through 36 holes. Suffice it to say this did not go unnoticed by playing partner Mike Weir (69, 4 under), who will be an assistant to Presidents Cup Captain Ernie Els at Royal Melbourne, December 12-15. “I love his game,� Weir said after the round, which was played under cloudy skies and using lift, clean and place rules for the second straight day. “It was great to get paired with him. We have an eye on him for the Presidents Cup; Ernie and I were texting last night about it for 10 minutes, back and forth. What’d you think? And all that stuff.  “He’s got all the talent in the world, hits all the shots,� Weir added. “He chips well, he putts great. He’s going to be a force to be reckoned with. He’s trending in the right direction, and I’m sure that’s what Ernie wants is guys that are playing well. He’s not one of the bombers, but he’s in the mid to upper range like Rickie Fowler. He still hits it plenty far. He’s got a really mature head, has a good guy on the bag. I’ve had my eye on him for quite a bit.� Im, who turned 21 and got his driver’s license earlier this year, kick-started his second round with a 4-under 31 on the front nine. He’s in great shape to knock out his seventh top-10 finish and maybe his first win, and move up from 13th in the International Presidents Cup standings. The biennial tournament has been in his sights ever since it came to his native South Korea in 2015. RELATED: Tee times | International Presidents Cup standings “The Presidents Cup in Incheon really motivated me to hopefully make the team this year,� he said through a translator after his round, which was watched by his parents, who travel with him, and his brother, among others. “And even though it’s not confirmed yet, I feel like I have a great chance to make the team, and it’s something that I’m really striving for.�  Im has long been on the radar of several golf-watchers, not just Els and Weir. He was the Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year last season, and in his first PGA TOUR start finished T4 at the Safeway Open in Napa, California, missing the three-man playoff by just a shot. “The kid is for real,� Els said then. “He’s got no fear,� said Im’s caddie, the former TOUR player Brian Vranesh, who first caddied for Im in the final stage of the 2017 Korn Ferry Tour Qualifying Tournament.  Vranesh calls Im “the hardest worker I’ve ever seen,� and indeed the two decamped to the Sedgefield practice green after the second round. Without trying to, Im has developed a swing that recalls Hideki Matsuyama with its slow takeaway. It also produces mind-numbingly consistent golf. His shots don’t curve much, his irons scrape the bottom of the sun, and he putts well, too.  He came to the Wyndham 30th in Strokes Gained: Tee-to-Green, 56th in Strokes Gained: Putting. If there has been a blemish to his rookie season, and you have to look pretty hard to find one, it is that Im hasn’t done well in the biggest tournaments. He missed the cut at THE PLAYERS Championship, PGA Championship and The Open Championship, and didn’t qualify for the Masters Tournament and U.S. Open. Otherwise, he’s been pretty much as advertised. He was one of the eight players who mathematically had a chance to move into the Wyndham Rewards Top 10, with $5.3 million in bonus money still up for grabs. He is projected to do just that, moving up to ninth. He loves to play, and has racked up an eye-popping 31 starts.   “I honestly feel I can play a lot better when I play more tournaments,� Im said. He plays so much he’s even been playing in Monday pro-ams in order to familiarize himself with the slate of TOUR courses, and he’s clearly taken a liking to Sedgefield Country Club. “I had a lot of opportunities this year for a win,� he said, “and I was in contention a lot, and I’ll definitely use those experiences to help me this week. I definitely will use those experiences to not make the same mistakes this week, and hopefully put all my focus into getting a win.�  

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ST. SIMONS ISLAND, Ga. – Webb Simpson was over par while his playing partners were going low in Thursday’s first round of The RSM Classic. He bogeyed his second hole on Sea Island’s Plantation Course, the easier of the two courses used this week, then failed to birdie the par-5 14th hole. His caddie, Paul Tesori, preached patience, and it paid off. Simpson played his final 13 holes in 8 under to shoot 65 and take the first-round lead. RELATED: Leaderboard | Wagner ties TOUR record with third albatross | Howell III stiil has burning desire to win “He told me, no matter how I started out, to stay patient,� Simpson said. “I think he knew scores would be good over there (on the Plantation Course). He helped me weather the storm.� Simpson is making just his second start of the fall season. He finished seventh at the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open. It was his 13th consecutive finish in the top 30, a span that includes three runners-up. Simpson has been a consistent contender at Sea Island, as well. He was runner-up in 2011, losing a playoff to Ben Crane, and finished third last year, a shot out of the playoff won by Charles Howell III. Simpson got stuck on Seaside in the worse side of the draw in the first round, but battled back with a 63-65 weekend. The year prior, Simpson was in 12th place at the halfway point but withdrew after the second round to be with his ailing father, who died shortly after. Simpson thrives on classic courses and said he plays well anytime he’s near the ocean in the southeastern United States. “I grew up going to the beach in Wilmington, so I just love anytime I get close to the coast here,� Simpson said.� Simpson is seeking his first win since the 2018 PLAYERS. He had three runners-up last season. Rory McIlroy beat him with a final-round 61 at the RBC Canadian Open. J.T. Poston shot 62 on Sunday of the Wyndham Championship. Simpson’s final-round 64 at the World Golf Championships-FedEx St. Jude Invitational was the low round of the day, but he started too far back to catch Brooks Koepka. “It’s been awhile since I’ve won,� Simpson said. “I’ve given myself chances here. Starting this week, all I wanted was a chance Sunday because I do feel comfortable here.�

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