2 Koreans in early contention at US Open
Kim Si-woo of Korea tees off on the 16th hole during the first round of the U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, Pa., U.S., June 12. AFP-Yonhap
Korean veterans Kim Si-woo and Im Sung-jae have put themselves in early contention at the third major tournament of the 2025 PGA Tour season.
Kim and Im each shot a two-under 70 to tie for third in the first round of the 125th U.S. Open at Oakmont Country Club in Oakmont, western Pennsylvania, on Thursday (local time). The par-70 course played at 7,372 yards in the first round.
Kim and Im are tied with the two-time U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka, with J.J. Spaun of the United States alone at the top at four-under. Thriston Lawrence of South Africa is in second place at three-under.
Kim, who has four tour titles, and Im, a two-time tour winner, are both seeking their first major championship victory.
This year, Im tied for fifth at the Masters in April, and Kim tied for eighth at the PGA Championship in May.
Kim, who had a 7:51 a.m. tee time, said he was lucky to have played in less windy conditions in the morning. After starting his day at No. 10, Kim had two birdies on his first nine holes, and then two birdies and two bogeys over his remaining nine holes.
"I played the last couple days in hard wind, and it kind of felt helpful for me," Kim said. "It was a good round. Honestly, I don't even know what I'm doing on the course. Kind of hitting well, but feel like this course is too hard for me. So kind of like no expectation, but I played great today."
Kim also said recording his first career major top-10 finish at the PGA Championship was a huge confidence boost and called it "the turning point."
"Even though the course is tough here, maybe I can do it again," Kim added.
Im, who also started on the 10th hole, had three birdies on his front nine. Birdies at Nos. 1 and 2 briefly gave him the tournament lead at five-under, but he gave those two shots right back with bogeys at the third and fourth holes. Im had another bogey at No. 8, a 276-yard par-3.
"Overall, I played really well," Im said. "I made a couple of putting mistakes. Basically, I planned to shoot under par, so I made the goal."
Im said fast greens and unforgiving rough made for tough playing conditions in the opening round.
"Most of the greens are very fast and tough. It's undulating, kind of a tricky break as well," he said. "Most of the times in the rough, it's very hard, so I need to lay up. Today, it was lucky that I hit many fairways. So that's what helped."
Two other Koreans in the field both shot over-par scores Thursday. Tom Kim had a 72 with three birdies against five bogeys. An Byeong-hun put up a 74 with two birdies and six bogeys.