Michael Kim makes first PGA win a memorable one
Michael Kim set the John Deere Classic scoring record on Sunday to win his first PGA Tour title after 84 starts.
Michael Kim had to wait a while to get his first PGA Tour win. When he finally did on Sunday at the John Deere Classic, he did so in record fashion.
The Korean-born, San Diego-raised Kim, who turned 25 on Saturday, closed the tournament with a five-under 66 to win by eight shots. It is the largest margin of victory since the John Deere moved to TPC Deere Run in 2000. His 27-under total for the week broke Steve Stricker’s tournament scoring record by a shot.
Kim took a five-shot lead into the final round. Any fear he would collapse as he chased his breakthrough win disappeared when he began his round with three straight birdies. That gave him seven birdies in a row going back to the end of the third round. Kim had two more birdies on the eighth and 16th. He didn’t make a bogey in his final 29 holes.
The win was a long time coming for Kim. He had a stellar amateur career at Cal-Berkeley, winning the Nicklaus and Haskins Awards as the top college golfer in 2013. At the 2013 U.S. Open, he was inside the top 10 going into the last round and finished as low amateur in a tie for 17th.
But success as a pro has always eluded him. He had just one top 10 finish in 83 prior events on the PGA Tour, a tie for third at the Safeway Open in 2016. He had missed five of his last six cuts coming into the John Deere. This struggle made him appreciate as much as anybody how hard it is to translate amateur success to the pro ranks.
“You say you dream about playing on the PGA Tour, of winning on the PGA Tour, but as a kid, you don’t really know how hard that is,” he said after his round. “How much work that takes. To be sitting here with the trophy, I don’t know, I’m at a bit of a loss for words.”
🏆 @Mike_Kim714 discusses his dominant, 8-shot win @JDClassic during his winner’s press conference: https://t.co/w2bi4sA9qk
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 15, 2018
What made the win all the more special for Kim is the success his own peers have already had. He is a member of the famed 2011 high school graduating class. Players from that class such as Jordan Spieth, Justin Thomas, Daniel Berger and Xander Schauffele already have multiple wins; Spieth and Thomas have each won Majors. Kim admits seeing them succeed while he struggled to find his place was motivation to join them.
"“I played against them in college. Beat a lot of them in college. Starting as a pro was relatively smooth…but when you compare it to some of the guys from that 2011 class, guys like Jordan, guys like Justin, Berger, Xander, you can’t help but feel like you’re being left behind. But it was more motivation than anything. Without them doing so well I might not be holding this trophy right now.”"
Francesco Molinari, Joel Dahmen, Sam Ryder and Bronson Burgoon tied for second behind Kim. Molinari is playing arguably the best golf of anyone the past two months. In May he won the BMW PGA Championship, the flagship event of the European Tour. He then finished runner-up at his native Italian Open the following week. Two weeks ago he won his first PGA title at the Quicken Loans National. Molinari is finding his form just as the Open Championship begins later this week, and he will go to Carnoustie as one of the favorites to lift the Claret Jug.
One player that will be joining Molinari at Carnoustie is Kim. He secured the last spot in the Open Championship field with his win this week. It will be his first Major since that magical week at Merion in 2013, and his first as a professional.
Kim wasn’t thinking about that as he walked up the 18th hole. What he was thinking about was who was there watching him. His family flew in Sunday to see him finish off the win and surprised him as he finished his round.
“I didn’t even notice they were here until I saw it on the camera. I teared up a little bit on the green and just tried to two-putt the last hole and not make a bogey,” he said, via Golf Week. “I’m just really thankful and proud.”