Tom Kim is enjoying the Genesis Scottish Open, it doesn’t matter what manner he acquired there.
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On Tuesday evening, a wierd story began effervescent up on social media. In line with the reviews, 22-year-old rising star Tom Kim was pressured to depend on a last-minute sponsor’s exemption to get into this week’s Genesis Scottish Open area, regardless of being totally exempt into the occasion.
A motive was not revealed. So, what offers?
First, Kim’s eligibility. In two and a half seasons on the PGA Tour, Kim has already collected three PGA Tour wins. Two of these got here final season and helped him end the yr at twentieth within the FedEx Cup standings, incomes him spots in any Tour occasion he wished to play this season.
And play he has. In complete, Kim has teed it up in 20 Tour occasions in 2024, together with a ridiculous stretch of nine-straight weeks courting from the CJ Cup in early Could all the best way to the Rocket Mortgage Traditional, which ended June thirtieth.
Kim’s preliminary absence from the sphere was even stranger given the truth that he has excelled on the Genesis Scottish Open, ending sixth final yr and third in 2022.
On Wednesday, Kim sat down for his pre-tournament press convention, and he added a small dose of readability to the scenario. In line with Kim, all of it comes right down to an unintentional missed deadline, presumably to formally decide to play the Scottish Open, which he in the end blamed on his “staff.”
“Yeah, clearly there was a mix-up on my staff’s finish. I simply with deadlines and stuff with two excursions, it typically will get complicated,” Kim shared on Wednesday. “I solely came upon about it earlier the day earlier than after I acquired a name from the staff saying, ‘Hey, we tousled on our finish. We aren’t making an attempt to do something bizarre however we tousled.’”
Kim then tried to quiet any criticisms that he had deliberately delayed committing to the match, earlier than once more pointing the finger at his staff.
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“Clearly I like popping out right here. I’d by no means do something remotely bizarre to simply flirt with the tournaments,” Kim stated. “It was an entire mistake on the individuals who assist me.”
As for his mind-bending nine-week stretch of aggressive golf he simply endured, Kim defined that it was an try to capitalize on enhancements to his recreation he made earlier than the Gamers Championship.
“After the Gamers, actually, I actually thought of, man, I’m enjoying good. My swing is in a great place. I simply want my competitiveness to match up, and the 9 weeks undoubtedly I feel was known as for,” Kim defined. “I did every little thing I may to play 9 weeks as a result of I knew it was going to be an extended stretch however the quantity issues I picked up from the nine-week stretch, I’d try this once more subsequent yr if I needed to. It was simply — undoubtedly wasn’t a panic. Simply it was meant to be and it was the proper name.”
Kim, who earned his greatest end of the yr with a runner-up on the Vacationers Championship, tees off for Spherical 1 of the Genesis Scottish Open on Thursday at 3:17 a.m. ET.
