Kim Joo-hyung takes second PGA title at Shriners Open

Golf

Published: 10 Oct. 2022, 15:03

Kim Joo-hyung takes second PGA title at Shriners Open

Kim Joo-hyung poses with the trophy after winning the Shriners Children's Open at TPC Summerlin on Sunday in Las Vegas, Nevada. [AFP/YONHAP]

Kim Joo-hyung is the first Korean to win a PGA title this season after beating world No. 4 Patrick Cantlay at the Shriners Children's Open on Sunday.

Not content with just outplaying the FedExCup champion, 20-year-old Kim also turned heads by powering through all four rounds without a single bogey. Kim on Sunday edged out of a tie with Cantlay on the last hole to become the first golfer in the world to win twice on the PGA Tour before turning 21.

After exchanging birdies on the back nine, the two players headed into the final par-4 18th tied at 24-under-par. It was that last hole that made the difference.

Cantlay was the first to play, but his 3-wood shot left of the fairway, landing in a gravelly desert bush. Despite attempting to blast out of the bush, the ball refused to escape and Cantlay was forced to take a penalty drop. When he finally did hit out of the desert sand, his ball flew toward the green but dropped short and landed in the pond.

Patrick Cantlay, center, reviews his shot from the desert area off the 18th fairway during the final round of the Shriners Children's Open on Sunday in Las Vegas. [AP/YONHAP]

After seeing this, Kim chose the safer route from the fairway rather than taking his chance to birdie the hole. He stayed away from the water, landing the ball on the safer side of the green and playing to a comfortable par while Cantlay had to settle for a triple-bogey after slotting in his 35-foot putt and finishing at 21-under-par, 263, alongside Matthew NeSmith. Kim finished with a total score of 24-under-par, 260, to win his second-ever PGA title.

"I got very lucky on the 18th," Kim said on Sunday after the win. "I'm not going to lie, Patrick played awesome and it was an honor to battle with him, and to come out on top, I feel very fortunate."

His bogey-free performance at TPC Summerlin makes Kim the first player since J.T. Poston at the 2019 Wyndham Championship to win a title without a single bogey.

Kim is now the youngest golfer ever to win two PGA titles, six months earlier than Tigers Woods, who won his second-ever trophy at 20 years and nine months old.

It's also Kim's second win in just four starts after earning his PGA Tour card. Kim officially joined the PGA Tour after winning his first-ever title last August at the Wyndham Championship.

That win earned Kim instant membership on the PGA Tour and also made him eligible for the FedExCup Playoffs. He made a rapid climb to prominence on the Tour with an impressive Presidents Cup debut just two weeks ago, contributing two points for the International Team at Quail Hollow.

"It's really amazing," said Kim on Sunday. "A few months ago, I didn't have any status in the U.S., and now, being a two-time winner on TOUR, having that place with Tiger, it's an unbelievable feeling for me. It's an honor for me and it's definitely a dream come true."

Alongside Kim, three other Koreans also landed in the top-10, marking the first time ever that four Koreans have made it into the top-10 at a PGA tournament.

PGA Tour rookie Kim Seong-hyeon tied for fourth at 20-under, Im Sung-jae, who was looking to defend his title, finished seventh and Kim Si-woo tied for eighth. By the time Kim Joo-hyung was on the last green, the Korean contingent was waiting on the sidelines to celebrate another Korean victory at TPC Summerlin.

"It's amazing. You know, they're my big brothers, and for them to wait on the 18th green for me, I'm really grateful for that. It's special for me for them to be there," said Kim.

"There's a lot of things that I still need to get better at golf and there's a lot of guys out here who have a lot more success than me, so I've got to learn and I've got to keep playing better."

Kim will head back to Asia for the next PGA tournament, the Zozo Championship teeing off Thursday at Accordia Golf Narashino Country Club in Inzai in Japan's Chiba Prefecture.

BY YUN SO-HYANG [yun.sohyang@joongang.co.kr]