Im Sung-jae Misses PGA Tour Championship for First Time in Career

By Yoo Jee-ho SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) -- For the first time in his PGA Tour career, Im Sung-jae will not get to play in the playoff finale in Atlanta. Im tied for 10th place at the BMW Championship, the second leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs, at Bellerive Country Club in St. Louis on Sunday (local time), with a four-round total of eight-under 272. It was Im's second consecutive top-10 finish, but it was not enough to put him inside the top 30 in the FedEx Cup standings and send him to the Tour Championship in Atlanta to close out the playoffs. Im ranked 40th in FedEx Cup points entering the BMW Championship and needed to at least tie for sixth place to crack the top 30. He ended up in 37th place instead. Im was tied for fourth place at the halfway mark after rounds of 67 and 64, but faded over the weekend by shooting 70 and 71. In the final round, Im had a birdie and an eagle, but also four bogeys. Im had played at each of the past seven editions of the Tour Championship, dating back to his rookie season in 2018-19. Im missed the first two months of this season while recovering from a wrist injury and has had an uncharacteristically inconsistent campaign. His late-season push, which included four consecutive top-15 finishes, proved to be too little and too late for the 28-year-old. Two other South Koreans will tee off at the Tour Championship at East Lake Golf Club starting Thursday. Kim Si-woo tied for 33rd at the BWM Championship at two-under 278 and slipped from fourth to fifth in FedEx Cup rankings -- the highest position by a player without a victory this season. Tom Kim tied for 28th at Bellerive at three-under 277 and will advance to the Tour Championship at No. 29 in FedEx Cup points. Both players will be making their first Tour Championship appearance since 2023.