WGC Match Play: Sungjae Im leads Asian charge on opening day at Austin Country Club
- Korean takes down American Maverick McNealy 8 and 6, as countrymen Si Woo Kim and Tom Kim also notch up wins
- But Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama made to work for 1-up victory over Kevin Kisner
Korean star Sungjae Im romped to a stylish 8 and 6 victory over American Maverick McNealy as the Asian brigade enjoyed a stellar opening day at the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play.
Countrymen Si Woo Kim and debutant Tom Kim secured a 4 and 3, and 2 and 1 wins over Chris Kirk of the US and Sweden’s Alex Noren respectively while Japanese star Hideki Matsuyama ground out a 1-up victory over former champion Kevin Kisner at Austin Country Club.
The only Asian golfer to suffer an opening day loss in the first of three round-robin group matches was K.H. Lee, who fell 3 and 1 to American Brian Harman.
World No 1 Scottie Scheffler launched his title defence with a hard-fought 1-up win over Davis Riley while second-seed Jon Rahm fell to a 2 and 1 loss to a resurgent Rickie Fowler.
The 24-year-old Im registered the third largest margin of victory in the history of the tournament as he capitalised on McNealy’s erratic play which included five bogeys through 12 holes. Im, making his third appearance in the tournament, hit three birdies which proved sufficient to put him firmly in control of his own destiny as he seeks to advance beyond the group stage for the first time.
“I was able to win by a huge margin, and it is always better to win fast in match play,” Im said. “Maverick missed some shots and his game was not quite on track, it was not a good day for him.”
