Kim Joo-hyung on Aug. 7 won the Wyndham Championship of the U.S. Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) Tour in Greensboro, North Carolina, with a score of 20-under 260. (Yonhap News)
By Kang Gahui
Kim Joo-hyung, 20, on Aug. 7 won the Wyndham Championship of the U.S. Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) Tour in Greensboro, North Carolina.
Born in 2002, he is the first player born after 2000 to win a PGA Tour event and the youngest Korean to do so.
Since 1932, Kim is the second-youngest player to win a PGA event after Jordan Spieth, who won the John Deere Classic in 2013 at 19 years and 10 months.
In the fourth and final round, Kim posted an eagle, eight birdies and a bogey at Sedgefield Country Club (par 70) in Greensboro to reduce his total by nine strokes.
Finishing at 20-under 260, he beat runner-up and fellow Korean Im Sung-jae and Korean American John Huh by five shots to earn the winner's check of USD 1.31 million (KRW 1.7 billion).
Kim played in the tournament as a "special temporary" member but his win secured his full membership and a berth in this season's playoff tournament. His global ranking also shot up from 34th last week to 21st.
The golfer was born in Seoul and underwent golf training in the Philippines, Australia, China and Thailand.
In 2018, Kim rose to the professional ranks through the Korean Tour hosted by the Korea Professional Golfers' Association (KPGA). Two years later, he won in playing just his second tournament on the tour, the Gunsan CC Open, to become the youngest pro to win a title on the tour.
His win came just three months and 17 days after he joined the tour, the fastest in KPGA history.
Kim is also the ninth Korean to win a PGA event, joining Choi Kyoung-ju, Yang Yong-eun, Bae Sang-moon, Noh Seung-yul, Kim Si-woo, Kang Sung-hoon, Im and Lee Kyoung-hoon.
kgh89@korea.kr