Kim Joo-hyung and Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland took a share of the lead on the opening day of the Genesis Scottish Open, co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour, with a total purse of $9 million.
Kim shot a 5-under-par 65 with six birdies and one bogey in the first round held at the Renaissance Club (par 70) in North Berwick, Scotland, on the 9th. McIlroy, Patrick Cantlay of the United States, Bernd Wiesberger of Austria, and Rasmus Hojgaard of Denmark also turned in 5-under-par scorecards. With five players tied for the lead, a fierce battle for the trophy is expected over the remaining rounds.
Kim, who started from the 10th hole, picked up two birdies on the front nine, then made a bogey on the 1st hole (par 5), his first of the back nine, before adding four more birdies on the remaining holes. Kim showed strong feel with his driver and iron shots, hitting 76.92% of fairways (10/13) and 83.33% of greens in regulation (15/18). "On a links course, you always have to be patient," Kim said. "Today my iron shot distance control was good, and my putting held up."
McIlroy, who also emerged as a co-leader, brightened his outlook for the Open Championship, the season's final major, next week. Also starting from the 10th hole, McIlroy managed to cut only one stroke on the front nine with three birdies and two bogeys, but on the back nine he grabbed an eagle on the 1st hole (par 5) and made consecutive birdies on the 7th (par 5) and 8th holes (par 4) down the stretch.
"My driving was decent. When you put your tee shot in the fairway, you get more chances to make birdies, and that part went well today," McIlroy said.
Brooks Koepka of the United States and Australian-Korean Min Woo Lee were tied for sixth at 4-under par. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler of the United States and Chris Gotterup, last week's John Deere Classic winner and the defending champion of this event, were tied for 27th at 2-under par.
The rest of the Korean players, aside from Kim, had a heavy day. Kim Si-woo was tied for 72nd at even par, Choi Seung-bin tied for 99th at 1-over par, and Im Sung-jae, Lee Jeong-hwan, and Ok Tae-hun tied for 124th at 2-over par.
