Jason Day vs Sungjae Im Prediction: Day to win this 18-hole matchup

In the 18-hole matchup of the Players Championship golf tournament, Jason Day and Sungjae Im will face off at Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. Who emerges victorious in this contest?

Jason Anthony Day, a professional golfer from Australia, actively competes on the PGA Tour. Among his notable achievements is winning the 2015 PGA Championship. At one point in his career, Day held the prestigious title of being the world number one in the World Golf Ranking, initially achieving this ranking in September 2015.

Day's rise to the top began in June 2011 when he first entered the world's top ten, reaching the ninth spot following his runner-up finish at the U.S. Open. In February 2014, he secured his inaugural WGC (World Golf Championships) title at the WGC-Accenture Match Play Championship and later triumphed in the same event in 2016. His 2016 victory placed him alongside Tiger Woods and Geoff Ogilvy as one of the few multiple winners of the WGC Match Play.

A significant milestone in Day's career came when he clinched his first major tournament victory at the 2015 PGA Championship. During this event, he achieved a remarkable score of 20 strokes under par, propelling him to the third position in the world rankings.

Sungjae Im, a South Korean professional golfer, turned professional in 2015. He won the first event of the season, The Bahamas Great Exuma Classic, becoming, at 19 years and 292 days, the second youngest winner in Web.com Tour history.

Im won twice and was Player of the Year on the 2018 Web.com Tour. He was Rookie of the Year for the 2018–19 PGA Tour and secured his first PGA Tour victory at The Honda Classic in March 2020.

In December 2017, Im finished second in the Web.com Tour Q-school, including a third round of 60.

In the 2018–19 PGA Tour season, Im won the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year. He became just the 13th rookie to qualify for the Tour Championship in the FedEx Cup era, ultimately finishing 19th in the standings. Im led the tour in starts (35) and cuts made (26), and his 118 rounds were 18 more than the nearest competitor. On 22 September 2019, Im lost the Sanderson Farms Championship in Jackson, Mississippi in a playoff to Sebastián Muñoz. In May 2023, Im travelled to South Korea, the week before the PGA Championship to play in the Woori Financial Group Championship on the Korean Tour. He shot a final-round 68, including an up-and-down birdie on the final hole to win by one shot.

These are two exceptional golfers with distinct profiles and records. However, Jason Day holds a slight advantage over Sungjae Im in terms of performance. Nonetheless, it's difficult to completely dismiss Sungjae Im considering his stunning performances even against top-tier golfers. Nevertheless, Jason Day is the clear favorite, making it nearly impossible not to back him for the win.