Will Kim Si-woo Break His Winning Drought at the 2026 CJ Cup? Key Insights and Predictions

Translation result. [Herald Economy = Reporter Jo Yong-jik] Si Woo Kim, Kyoung‑hoon Lee and Sungjae Im — all entered in the PGA Tour’s The CJ Cup Byron Nelson, which opens on the 22nd (Korean time) at TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas (par 71) — said Tuesday they’re aiming for strong showings at the $10.3 million event.

At the official CJ Cup press conference at TPC Craig Ranch on the 20th, Kim said, “I’m happy to be back. I’m looking forward to playing in an interesting group with Scottie (Scheffler) and Brooks (Koepka). I played here three weeks ago, so I got a feel for the greens and figured out where I can’t afford mistakes and what strategies to use.”

Kim said he’s entering the week comfortable both physically and mentally. Reflecting on last week’s PGA Championship, he called it “a tough week — the rough and the greens were not easy.” He added, “This course feels like a home course to me, so the atmosphere is relaxed. I want to enjoy the week.”

The 2023 runner-up, Kim sits No. 2 on the event’s power rankings and is considered one of the favorites. “With the green renovations, iron play has become more important. My putting is a real weakness,” he admitted. “It’s been more than three years since my last win, and I’d love to get one at the main sponsor’s event.”

Sungjae Im told reporters he missed the first two months of the season with a wrist injury and felt he needed to play more tournaments to make up ground. “There are about three months until the playoffs, and my goal is to accumulate as many points as possible by then,” he said. “My body isn’t in peak condition, but I plan to play a lot.”

The season-ending Tour Championship brings together the top 30 players in the FedExCup standings to determine the year’s best. Im has reached that field every year since 2019 but currently sits 59th in the FedExCup standings and needs to climb significantly.

“I narrowly missed advancing at the PGA Championship by one stroke,” Im said. “I struggled after missing the rough and fairways. Since this is the main sponsor’s event, I want to perform well. This course usually yields low scores, but with the changes this year I’ll pay close attention and aim to play smart.”

The field also features Kyoung‑hoon Lee, who won this tournament in back-to-back seasons (2020–21 and 2021–22). Lee missed last season with a hip injury, returned in February and has played three events this year.

At the press conference, Lee said, “I was afraid when I first took medical leave, but the rest gave me a lot of time to reflect. Watching Sungjae and Si Woo play made me want to compete again.”

He added, “I rebuilt my fitness with swimming and training. During this period, our main sponsor CJ quietly trusted and waited for me, and I want to repay that faith by performing better.”