Im, Mitchell are sixth at New Orleans as Hardy and Riley record maiden win

Korean star Sungjae Im and his American partner Keith Mitchell took sixth place at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans, five shots behind winners Nick Hardy and Davis Riley of the US on Sunday.

The two, partnering for the first time in the only PGA Tour competition to feature a two-man team format, started the final round at TPC Louisiana one shot behind the overnight leaders and in the title hunt until a back nine stumble that saw them card a closing 72.

The final day belonged to Hardy and Riley as they celebrated their maiden PGA Tour victory together after combining for a flawless 65 that had five birdies over the final nine holes.

Hardy, 27, and Riley, 26, closed out the tournament with a record 30-under 258, two shots ahead of second-placed Adam Hadwin and Nick Taylor of Canada.

Wyndham Clarke and Beaue Hossler took third place on 27-under par 261.

“It was nerve-racking honestly. Any time you're trying to win a golf tournament, more or less to get your first win is always tough,” said Riley later.

“You're going to have to kind of step up there and hit some shots. Fortunately, we were able to kind of execute some really good shots coming down the stretch, and it was really fun.”

Added Hardy: “I'll second that. I feel like we both handled it very well coming down the stretch. First-timers, obviously. So, to be able to do that together, kind of rub off each other's confidence and sort of attitude. It was definitely special to have a partner for the first one.”

Defending champions Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay finished tied fourth after closing with a 66 where their combined scores in the more difficult foursomes were lower than the four-ball format during the week.

Koreans Si Woo Kim and Joohying Kim brought in the best-ever result by an Asian pairing since the tournament became a team event in 2017 with a tie for seventh place after closing out with a 68 in the foursomes (alternate shot) format.

Countrymen Byeong Hun An and S.H. Kim shot a final round 71 to finish in a six-way tie for 13th place, the PGA Tour said.

Im, 25, and Mitchell, 31, were the story of the event having forged an unlikely pairing. Despite Im’s limited English, they were in contention for top honours on Sunday but late bogeys scuppered their hopes.

After the first nine holes, Im and Mitchell were two-under par 34 with birdies on the first and eighth holes but dropped shots on holes 10, 12 and 15 against one final birdie on 13 saw their challenge vanish down the home straight.

The result was Im’s sixth top-10 of the season and propelled him from 28th to 20th on the FedEx Cup standings after a tied second finish in the season-long race last year.

Si Woo Kim and Joohyung ‘Tom’ Kim, who enjoyed a memorable match win together at the Presidents Cup last September, ended strongly with five birdies against one bogey on their card to finish on 23-under 265, seven strokes behind the winners

The strong showing was a much-needed boost for Tom and Si Woo as they rose to 13th and 17th in the FedEx Cup standings.

Final round leaderboard

Davis Riley/Nick Hardy 64-66-63-65; 258 (-30)

Nick Taylor/Adam Hadwin 66-67-64-63; 260 (-28)

Wyndham Clark/Beau Hossler 61-67-62-71; 261 (-27)

Xander Schauffele/Patrick Cantlay 67-63-66-66; 262 (-26)

Taylor Moore/Matthew NeSmith 64-66-63-69; 262 (-26)