Kim Joo-hyung aims for a win at Sony Open

"Continues to leave us shaking our heads, so it's within reason that he'll defy a historical trend."

That is how the PGA Tour eval‎uated Kim Joo-hyung via its official website by topping him on its Power Rankings list for the upcoming Sony Open in Hawaii slated for January 12. The list predicts the potential winner of the tournament. Kim, who shared fifth place in this year's first PGA Tour Sentry Tournament of Champions, is now aiming for a win at the Sony Open in Hawaii.

While only 39 players joined the Sentry Tournament who either won a PGA Tour in 2022 or played in the season final tour championships, as many as 144 golfers will be playing in the Sony Open, which is a regular tournament. The venue will be the Waialae Country Club in Honolulu, Hawaii.

As described in the Power Rankings list, Kim boasts the highest place in the world ranking (14th) and FedEx Cup rankings (3rd) among the players in the Sony Open. The 21-year-old moved up one notch from his previous 15th place by grabbing a share in the fifth place of the Sentry Tournament of Champions. His highest record was 14th place, a brief tie in early November 2022. With many global top golfers deciding to skip the tournament, Kim aims for his third PGA Tour win after the Wyndham Championship in August 2022 and the Shriners Children's Open in October 2022.

Led by the youngest Kim, seven Korean players are participating in the tournament. Lee Kyung-hoon, who shared the seventh place, and Im Sung-jae, who finished 13th in the tournament respectively, are joining the Sony Open with Kim. Im, who is participating in the Sony Open for the fifth time, was ranked 6th in the Power Rankings list.

Korean golfers Kim Si-woo, Kim Sung-hyun and An Byeong-hun are playing at the Sony Open as their first game of 2023. Choi Kyung-joo, one of Korea's most successful male golfers and the first Korean to win the 2008 Sony Open, is also joining the tournament after a hiatus.


Heon-Jae Lee uni@donga.com