Im Sung-jae of CJ finished as runner-up at an Asian Tour event he entered to fine-tune his form, brightening his prospects of reclaiming the Genesis Championship title.
Im shot a 3-under-par 67 in the final round of the SJM Macao Open, a $1 million Asian Tour event held at Macau Golf and Country Club (par 70) in Macau, China, on the 17th local time. He finished at 17-under 263, tying Wang Wei-hsuan of Taiwan, but lost in a playoff and had to settle for second place. The runner-up prize was $132,000, or about 176.58 million won.
Im has not won a title since claiming the Woori Financial Group Championship on the Korea Professional Golfers' Association Tour in April 2024, and once again came up just short of victory.
Starting the final round tied for the lead after a four-stroke swing, Im made consecutive birdies early to move into sole possession of first place. But he then dropped two bogeys and wavered, while Charles Porter of the United States, who finished earlier in the day, pulled level with Im after an eagle on his closing hole.
Im held steady despite the pressure. He added two birdies on the 13th (par 5) and 14th (par 4) to regain momentum. After a bogey on the 16th (par 4), he birdied both of the remaining holes to close out his round.
But Im ultimately fell to Wang's late charge. Trailing Im by one stroke heading into the final hole, Wang made an eagle on the 18th (par 5) to force a playoff and went on to beat Im for the title.
Im has had a roller-coaster season. He struggled badly early in the year after a wrist injury sustained during winter training, before turning his form around in August. He posted three consecutive top-10 finishes — tied for fifth at the FedEx St. Jude Championship and tied for 10th at the BMW Championship, the first two FedEx Cup playoff events in August, and tied for ninth at the Baycurrent Classic in October — and signaled a full recovery by contending for the title in Macau.
Carrying that momentum from Macau, Im will tee off in the Genesis Championship, a $4 million DP World Tour event, over four days starting on the 22nd at Woo Jeong Hills Country Club (par 71) in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province. Im won the 2019 edition at the tournament's youngest-ever age, 21 years, six months and 13 days, and is seeking to reclaim the crown after seven years.