PALM HARBOR, Fla. (AP) — After a slow start in his return from a wrist injury, Im Sung-jae was in position to claim a wire-to-wire victory at the Valspar Championship in Innisbrook.
Brandt Snedeker was right next to him in the final combination and had the latest hot putter in his bag.
Lim made a nice 13-foot birdie putt on the par-4 18th hole on Saturday, posting a 2-under 69 and a two-stroke lead over Snedeker, the 45-year-old U.S. Presidents Cup captain who is playing on a sponsor exemption, and David Lipsky.
Snedeker birdied three of the first four holes with a 67, and Lipsky shot a 70, his highest score in the low 70s on a sunny afternoon in 15 mph winds.
After missing the cut in two consecutive matches in his return, Im led by one stroke in each of the first two rounds, scoring 64-69 in the firm, fast conditions of the Copperhead course.
Lim said, “I couldn’t practice for two months.” “So I think I’m able to make a lot of the shots that I didn’t like last year. Once I started practicing, I was able to fix them and I’m steadily getting better.”
On Saturday, Ren had birdies on Nos. 1, 7 and 8 to play the front nine at 3 under. He bogeyed the 12th par-4 and 13th par-3, and sunk a left-to-right putt on the 18th for 11 under par, 202.
“I was really happy because I played well in the last section from No. 16 to No. 18,” Im said. “And I’m really excited to make a birdie on the last hole and go into tomorrow with a two-shot lead.”
The 27-year-old Korean player has two wins on the PGA Tour, the 2020 Honda Classic and the 2021 Shriners Children’s Open.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been at the front like this,” Im said. “I’m sure I’ll be nervous, but I’ll do my best to play my best.”
Snedeker won the last of his nine PGA Tour titles in 2018, but had just two top 10s last year. He switched to a mallet putter a few weeks ago, but this week he hasn’t been playing well on and around the greens.
“I finished strong and had a good swing on the way down,” Snedeker said. “We rolled the ball really well and chipped the ball really well, so if we can control the long game a little bit, we’ll have a good chance tomorrow.”
Lipsky had five birdies and four bogeys. He is undefeated on the PGA Tour.
“We’ve had our ups and downs,” Lipsky said. “I wasn’t hitting the fairways and greens as well as I wanted, but overall my short game and putter really saved me and kept me going.”
Matt Fitzpatrick, who placed second at The Players Championship last week, was tied with Marco Penge at 8 under. They each fired 68 shots.
Brooks Koepka shot a 71 to tie for 16th place at 3 under.
