Rickie Fowler and Y.E. Yang lead first round of Korea Open as Rory McIlroy lands a joint third
Rory McIlroy instantly shot to the top of the leaderboard in the first round of the Kolon Korea Open, carding a round of 67 to fall one shot behind the lead at the scenic Woo Jeong Hills Country Club. The reigning US Open champion has good track record on
Korean Turf, posting a strong finish in 2009 when he first visited the Asian country and is hoping to pull in another title before the season comes to an end.
Starting off with an unblemished spree of seven birdies, McIlroy fell for the treacherous water hazards twice to finish for four-under, behind leaders Rickie Fowler and Y.E. Yang, both of whom shot five-under, 67.
He said, “I felt like I played well. I started nicely and I was three-under through nine holes, but I had a bad couple of holes on the back nine at 10 and 11 with a bogey and a double bogey.”
Yang, the only Asian player to have won a major, the 2009 PGA Championship, is also the defending champion here this weekend. The 39-year-old gave a hint of his destructive capabilities last year when he overcame a colossal 10-shot deficit in the final round
to ultimately lift the title.
Yang said, “I birdied the first hole of the day and that helped lot. I played well and enjoyed the round. I am not worried about missing the cut and I think I can play well over the final three rounds. I think 12 or 13 under par will be the winning score
at the end of the week.”
Fowler, meanwhile, has decided to stay in contention like many of his earlier bids, in search for his maiden victory. Part of the losing Ryder Cup team last year, Fowler has been struggling since turning professional.
McIlroy is sharing the third place alongside Korea’s Hong Soon-sang and his amateur compatriot, Lee Soo-min. Hong, who has posted two victories on the Korean turf this year and is ranked second on the Korean Money List, poses a formidable threat to the rampaging
players on top.
Another group of strong competitors including Korea’s Kim Meen-whee, Australia’s Andrew Tschudin, Canadian Ronald Harvey, American John Huh and China’s Zhang Xinjun are tied for the joint sixth with their respective scores of 69.
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