Im Sung-jae (28, CJ) has failed to advance to the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) Tour playoffs final for the eighth consecutive year.
On Monday, Im competed in the final round of the BMW Championship, the second playoff event of the PGA Tour, at Bellerive Country Club (par 71) in St. Louis, Missouri. He carded a 1-over par 72, with one birdie, one eagle, and four bogeys.
Finishing with a total score of 8-under par 272, Im tied for 10th place alongside Michael Brennan (USA), marking his fifth top-10 finish of the season.
However, this result wasn’t enough to secure a spot in next week’s Tour Championship, the final playoff event.
Im, who was ranked 40th in the FedEx Cup standings last week, needed a top-7 finish in this tournament to grab one of the 30 available spots for the finale.
He showed promise, sitting in 4th after the second round and 7th through the third, but slipped in the final round.
Having qualified for the Tour Championship every year from 2019 to 2022, Im’s early-season wrist injury proved costly this year.
Im struggled from the outset on Sunday. He bogeyed the 2nd hole (par 4) after finding the water hazard with his approach shot.
He then three-putted for bogey on the 5th (par 4) and found the bunker off the tee on the 6th (par 3), leading to another dropped shot.
However, Im caught a break on the 8th (par 5), holing out for eagle from 22 meters in the rough.
Unfortunately, he couldn’t capitalize on this momentum and three-putted for bogey on the 12th (par 4), adding to his frustrations.
After a string of pars, Im managed a birdie on the 17th (par 5), but it was too little, too late to make a significant move up the leaderboard.
Despite finishing lower than Im in this event, both Kim Joo-hyung (24, Nike Golf) and Kim Si-woo (31, CJ) secured spots in the Tour Championship.
Kim Joo-hyung tied for 28th at 3-under par 277. Although his FedEx Cup ranking dropped three spots, he squeaked into the finale at 29th place.
His victory at the Scottish Open in July proved crucial in boosting his standing.
Kim Si-woo, who has been consistent all season, finished tied for 33rd at 2-under par 278.
Despite dropping one spot in the FedEx Cup rankings, he maintained his top-5 position, ensuring his place in next week’s finale.
Wyndham Clark (USA) claimed victory with a total score of 17-under par 263, edging out Patrick Cantlay (USA, 14-under par 266) and Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland, 13-under par 267).
This marks Clark’s third win of the season, following triumphs at the Wells Fargo Championship and the U.S. Open. The winner’s share of the purse was 3.6 million USD.
World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (USA) finished tied for 12th at 7-under par 273. He heads into the Tour Championship maintaining his top spot in the FedEx Cup standings.