An Byeong-hun made an eagle to hang around early contenders to begin the second major tournament of the 2025 PGA Tour season in North Carolina.
The South Korean veteran shot two-under 69 at the PGA Championship at the par-71, 7,596-yard Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte on Thursday (local time) and sits five back of the leader, Jhonattan Vegas of Venezuela, in a tie for 20th.
An began his round on the 10th hole, and had three birdies and two bogeys over his first nine holes. After trading two birdies for two bogeys over the first seven holes on his back nine, An eagled the par-4 eighth hole, which played 342 yards in the first round.
An sent his tee shot 307 yards to the right side of the fairway, and his wedge shot dropped into the cup for the eagle.
But An bogeyed the very next hole to finish with a 69. The 33-year-old has yet to win on the PGA Tour.
An said afterward “a bit of everything” went well for him in the opening round.
“I drove it really good. I had some unlucky bounces, finished in the bunker, hit some great drives and some decent shots,” he said. “Some of the long irons were a little iffy, not where I wanted to hit it. But I made some putts and missed some putts.”
An said having played on the tour for many years has set him up better mentally for majors.
“I know it’s not going to be an easy test,” he said. “So I think I’m mentally prepared better going into the majors because I know it’s going to be hard for everybody.”
Aside from his mental preparation, An said he is driving the ball better than a season ago.
“I know what this course can give back to you if you get too aggressive. Some holes you can. You have to know where the misses are, I think,” he said. “If you miss in the right spot, you can get a good chance at up-and-down, but once you’re in the wrong spot, you’re not going to have any chances. I know I’ll hit some good shots tomorrow and the rest of the week, but I’ve got to manage some of the missed shots on the good side of it.”
Two other South Korean players each had an eagle, too, though they found themselves further out of early contention.
Tom Kim shot an even 71 to tie for 46th after an up-and-down back nine.
He had two birdies on the front nine but was one-under through 14 after making two bogeys against one birdie on the back nine. Then at the par-5 15th, Kim hit a 304-yard drive, and his second shot put him about 34 feet away from the hole. From there, Kim rolled his chip for an eagle that took him to three-under.
However, Kim bogeyed the 16th and double-bogeyed the 18th to finish even-par for the round. On the finishing hole, Kim found left rough off the tee and then went bunker to bunker with his next two shots. He needed four shots to reach the green and missed an eight-foot bogey putt.
Kim Si-woo shot 72 in the first round to tie for 60th after suffering the same fate as Tom Kim down the stretch — making an eagle at the 15th and a double bogey at the 18th. Kim Si-woo had two birdies and three bogeys on the front nine.
Im Sung-jae was the top-ranked South Korean player entering this week at No. 18, but he was the worst among the Korean quartet in the opening round after shooting two-over 73. It put him in a tie for 73rd place.
He had two birdies and three bogeys over his first eight holes, and then had a string of eight consecutive pars before stumbling with a bogey at the par-3 17th, where he missed the green with his tee shot and two-putted from about six feet.
