Sungjae Im’s Comeback Story Gets Real Test at Valspar—and He’s Ready

There’s something about watching a player fight his way back from injury that reminds you why we cover this game. Not the dramatic comebacks—everybody loves those. I’m talking about the quiet, grinding kind, where a guy misses two straight cuts and has to prove to himself as much as anyone else that he still belongs.

That’s Sungjae Im right now at Innisbrook, and after 35 years of covering professional golf, I can tell you: this one matters.

The Math of Momentum

Im shot 64-69 to reach 9-under through 36 holes at the Valspar Championship, holding a one-shot lead over David Lipsky heading into the weekend. But here’s what the scoreboard doesn’t tell you: Im was playing hurt just two weeks ago. Those missed cuts weren’t random bad golf. They were a guy working his way back to trusting his body again.

I’ve seen this script before, and I’ve seen it go sideways just as often as it goes right. The thing about wrist injuries in golf is that they mess with your confidence in ways other injuries don’t. Every swing—from your morning warmup to your final putt—reminds you that something’s not quite 100 percent. You’re never fully committed, and commitment is what separates good rounds from great ones on courses like Copperhead.

So when Im told the media that

“The important thing, well, the most important thing is that I can get my drives into the fairways. If I do that, then I will be able to give myself good chances. There’s just a lot of danger out there on the course,”

he wasn’t just making small talk. That’s a player who’s learned something about managing risk. After two missed cuts, you don’t have the luxury of being loose. You have to be smart.

Friday’s Lesson in Course Management

Im’s second round was the real story—not the 69 itself, but how he got there. He stumbled early with three bogeys and just two birdies on the front nine for a 37, which in firm and fast conditions is exactly where you don’t want to be. But then something clicked. He birdied the par-5 11th, the par-4 12th, and made the crucial move with a 7-foot putt on the 17th to break a tie for the lead.

That’s not luck. That’s a player understanding the topology of a course and knowing which holes he could attack. Brandt Snedeker, who started the day just one back, shot 72 and tumbled to 5-under. Snedeker’s a better ball striker than most 45-year-olds on tour, but the course was tightening up, and he couldn’t adjust. Im did.

What strikes me about this particular moment is that Im has already won twice on the PGA Tour—2020 Honda Classic, 2021 Shriners Children’s Open—so he’s not some hungry kid trying to prove himself. He’s a proven winner coming back from injury, which actually raises the stakes psychologically. Everyone’s waiting to see if he still has it.

The Lipsky Question

David Lipsky shot 65 on Friday and sits just one back at 8-under. He’s winless on the PGA Tour, which is the elephant in the room in conversations about his game. Talented players who can’t close are everywhere in professional golf—it’s the difference between being good and being great, and it’s not always physical.

But I’ll give Lipsky credit: he understands his own game. He played early Friday, made birdies on the first two holes and four of his first six, then had the discipline to simply survive the back nine. That’s mature golf.

“It was excellent. I did everything well. Missed it in the right spots, holed the putts early on to get some momentum going. That finishing stretch is obviously tough, so able to save a couple pars down on 16 and 18 and really kept the round going.”

He’s right about one thing: the finishing stretch at Innisbrook is brutal, and if he can somehow find a way to close this weekend against Im, it’ll say something about his evolution as a competitor.

The Forgotten Story

Let’s not overlook what happened to Viktor Hovland, the defending champion. He missed the cut with 70-75. That’s the kind of result that makes you wonder what’s going on beneath the surface, but it’s also a reminder that this game doesn’t care about your pedigree or last year’s trophies. You have to show up every week.

Meanwhile, guys like Chandler Blanchet (7-under) and Doug Ghim (7-under) are lurking, and Brooks Koepka at 4-under is playing well enough that you can’t write him off—though he did miss a 3-footer on 18 that probably keeps him close enough to be annoyed all night.

Jordan Spieth, who started in contention after Round 1, went 2-over on the front nine Friday before salvaging a 70 with a 3-under back nine. He’s six shots back. In my experience, that kind of round—where you nearly torpedo yourself and then battle back—can go one of two ways: it either hardens a player’s resolve for the weekend, or it plants a seed of doubt that grows.

Looking Ahead

Im’s prediction that winds will increase and greens will firm up even more over the weekend is exactly right. And that should favor him. He’s already proved he can navigate these conditions when they’re tight. Lipsky will need to keep up his early-round aggression and hope his putter stays hot.

Having caddied back in the ’90s, I can tell you that injury comebacks often come down to this: do you trust your swing when it matters most? By Sunday evening at Innisbrook, we’ll know if Sungjae Im has answered that question.