The 27-year-old Im posted a closing 3-under 69 on a memorable Sunday at Augusta National to finish as the leading Asian golfer in tied fifth on 7-under 281, four shots back of McIlroy who dramatically prevailed over Justin Rose with a birdie 3 on the first extra hole at the 18^th to earn his first Masters title and the coveted green jacket.

The Northern Irishman, who arrived at Augusta National on the back of two victories this season, joined an illustrious club comprising Gene Sarazen, Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods as the only men who have won all four major championships. He signed for a closing 73 which included two double bogeys and a closing bogey in regulation but prevailed with some gutsy golf including a glorious approach to four feet in extra time for the well-earned title.

Im has now matched Korean trailblazer K.J. Choi who also has three career top-10s at the Masters, a run which has given him added fuel to keep dreaming of winning the prestigious tournament in the near future.

“It was a good week and finishing top-5, it shows that I’m able to compete here,” said Im, who was runner-up in 2020 and T8 in 2022. “The golf course is so difficult and I managed to play well and keep the mistakes to a minimum. I really love coming back to play here and look forward to next year and having another go again. Rory made his dream come true today and hopefully my time will come one day. I can only keep working hard to get better.”

In what was his sixth Masters start, the two-time PGA Tour winner has slowly learned to master the intricacies of Augusta National. He sank four birdies and a magical eagle on the 13^th hole by largely producing shots that require intimate knowledge of how the ball would react on the treacherous Augusta National greens. On the 7^th hole, he spun his approach back to four feet for his second birdie of the day, and a long iron approach into the par-5 13^th hole was pure class as his ball landed on the green and fed off the slope to within five feet of the pin.

“The eagle on 13 was definitely a highlight and it was good to save par from the bunker on the last hole as well,” said Im, who has three top-5s this season and will rise to 15^th place on the FedExCup standings. “Last year [when he missed the cut], my feeling was not very good, and then my game was not up there, but this year is kind of different. I was under par from the first day, so I feel good about that.”

Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama, the 2021 Masters champion, shot the joint low round of 66 to finish T21 alongside another Korean, Byeong Hun An who carded a final round 71. Tom Kim closed with a 79 for T52.

McIlroy made it a heart-stopping day as his overnight two-shot lead evaporated on the very first hole which he double-bogeyed, but the World No. 2 brilliantly fought back with four birdies to seemingly take control of the tournament. He then nervously dropped four shots over the next four holes, including a double on the par-5 13^th hole with a wedge in hand, before fighting back once again with two wonderful birdies on the 15^th and 17^th holes. With a one-shot lead playing 18, McIlroy had a 5-foot par putt for the win but missed. After shrugging off the disappointment, a precise wedge approach to four feet in the first extra hole sealed the deal for McIlroy as Rose, who had charged into contention with a 66, agonizingly missed his own birdie chance earlier from 16 feet.

“It's a dream come true. I have dreamt about that moment for as long as I can remember.  There were points in my career where I didn't know if I would have this nice garment over my shoulders, but I didn't make it easy today. I was nervous. It was one of the toughest days I've ever had on the golf course,” said McIlroy, whose major wins include the 2011 US Open, 2012 PGA Championship, 2014 Open Championship and 2014 PGA Championship.

***

The writer is senior director, marketing & communications – APAC for the PGA Tour and is based in Malaysia.

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