Asian challenge fires on day one of Dell Technologies Match Play

Korean stars Sungjae Im and Si Woo Kim romped to stylish wins as the Asian challenge stood tall on the opening day of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday.

Im carved out a comprehensive 8&6 result over American Maverick McNealy while Kim swamped Chris Kirk of the U.S. 4&3, both matches ending with plenty of holes in hand, the PGA Tour said.

Defending champion and world number one Scottie Scheffler had to dig deep in beating Davis Riley 1-up while second-seed Jon Rahm fell to a 2&1 defeat to the popular Rickie Fowler.

Event debutant and a third Korean star, Joohyung ‘Tom’ Kim, beat Europe’s Ryder Cup stalwart Alex Noren of Sweden 2&1 while Japanese superstar Hideki Matsuyama ground out a 1-up victory over former winner 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&1 to American Brian Harman while rising Indian-American star Sahith Theegala Reddy went down in a last-hole battle to Australian Min Woo Lee.

Im, 24, recorded the third largest margin of victory in the history of the tournament as he capitalised on McNealy’s erratic play that included five bogeys in the 12 holes of play needed to decide the match.

In his third appearance at the Dell Technologies Match Play, the Korean hit three birdies which proved sufficient to put him firmly in control as he looks to advance out of 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. Maverick missed some shots and his game was not quite on track, it was not a good day for him. That enabled me to win easily. I have two more days to go, so I’ll try my best,” said world no. 18 Im who next faces J.T. Poston in their group match.

“It is important to win the first match, although it is always unpredictable in the group stage. Even though you have two wins, you might not advance. I will try to focus until the end. I will be playing with J.T. tomorrow and I think he will not make many mistakes,” added Im, who improved his tournament record to 3-4-0.

Joohyung Kim made statement in his winning debut over the vastly-experienced Noren. The 20-year-old made six birdies to end the match on the 17th hole against the Swede.

“It was definitely an up-and-down match. It wasn't easy. I had some mistakes that I could have fixed, but I played really well. And Alex is a fighter and I knew that, and I knew it wasn't going to be easy. I just kind of kept my head down,” said Kim.

The talented Kim was a star at the Presidents Cup last September, producing critical results and knows the experience will come in handy at Austin as he chases a third PGA Tour title.

“It was definitely a good experience for me,” said Kim, who won two points for the International Team last fall. “I think it's an event that I've always wanted to play, and definitely with the pressure that I've built up from the Presidents Cup I feel like it's a great experience, and definitely using it this week.”

Si Woo Kim, who has gone past beyond the group stage only once in six previous attempts, produced some flawless golf including a chip-in eagle two on the par-4 13th hole from 25 yards en route to his triumph over Kirk. He made five other birdies.

“I was just trying to play my own game and it worked. Started the first few holes well, driving the ball well, and my irons and putting also felt comfortable. I think that’s why I finished nicely. It’s important to win the first match. If you lose, you then lose confidence and concentration. With this start, I’m excited and it gives me more energy. The eagle two on 13 was really nice, and it felt great,” said Kim.

Matsuyama, an eight-time PGA Tour winner, was pleased with his opening win over match play expert Kisner, who won in Austin in 2019 and has also finished runner-up twice.