Seneca Falls Country Club
Menu
  • Home
  • Our Golf Course
    • Course Overview
    • Front Nine
    • Back Nine
    • Golf Leagues
    • Golf Lessons
  • Memberships
  • Calendar
  • Pub & Grille
  • Banquet Facility
    • SFCC Dinner Buffet
    • Plated Dinners
    • Dinner Packages
    • Hors d’ oeuvres Menu
    • Luncheon Menu
  • Club History
    • Written History & Archives
    • Club Championship
  • Tee Times
Menu

Joohyung Kim, 20, earns PGA Tour card with 61 to win Wyndham Championship

Posted on August 8, 2022 by Mark Farrow

GREENSBORO, N.C. — The last five weeks feels like three months to 20-year-old Joohyung “Tom” Kim, and for good reason. The South Korean kid who named himself after a cartoon train is on the fast track.

He got a rare PGA Tour start in the Scottish Open because of his standing on a Korean tour points list, hopeful of doing well enough to get a shot at the Korn Ferry Tour finals.

Now he’s a PGA Tour winner who is No. 21 in the world and headed to the FedEx Cup playoffs, and he can probably count on a spot with the International team at the Presidents Cup.

All aboard with Tom the Train!

“It’s been a crazy month,” Kim said.

He announced his arrival on the PGA Tour at the Wyndham Championship, where he began the tournament with a quadruple-bogey 8 and finished it with a 9-under 61 for a five-shot victory.

“I’m really, really happy for Tom,” said Sungjae Im, who completed the rain-delayed third round Sunday morning with a one-shot lead and couldn’t keep up with Kim, because no one could. Kim shot 27 on the front nine that left everyone in his wake.

“He’s a great kid and to come out here and to win on tour as a nonmember and secure your card is really not an easy task and he achieved that,” Im said.

Kim, who turned 20 in June, is the second-youngest winner on the PGA Tour since World War II. Jordan Spieth was two weeks away from turning 20 when he won the 2013 John Deere Classic.

The victory gave Kim instant membership on the PGA Tour, making him eligible for the FedEx Cup playoffs that start next week. He is No. 34, assured of playing two postseason events and with a reasonable shot at getting to the finale at East Lake.

Im had a 68 and tied for second along with John Huh (67).

Kim spent his developmental years in the Philippines and in Australia. He already had won three times on the Asian Development Tour and once in Korea before making his American debut at age 18 in the 2020 PGA Championship at Harding Park.

As for the name? As a young boy, he was a big fan of Thomas the Tank Engine in the TV series “Thomas & Friends.”

“You’re supposed to let your parents name yourself and I was like, ‘Nope, I’m to name myself Thomas.’ I loved the show as a kid. I haven’t watched it or anything, but apparently I really loved the train.”

The other option — he was a big “Toy Story” fan — would have been Buzz Lightyear. That would have worked. The kid is creating quite the buzz, and he’s light years ahead of others his age.

Only Rory McIlroy and Sergio Garcia were younger when they reached as high as No. 21 in the world ranking.

Kim finished third in the Scottish Open, the first time it was co-sanctioned by the PGA Tour, and his goal was to get enough FedEx Cup points to finish equal to the top 200 so he could earn his card through a series of Korn Ferry Tour events late in the summer.

He earned special temporary PGA Tour membership when he made the cut at the British Open. He secured a PGA Tour card last week with a seventh-place finish in the Rocket Mortgage Classic. The stress gone, not even an opening quadruple bogey rattled him.

“It’s been a five-week stretch for me, but it feels like three months,” Kim said. “Yeah, it’s been a hectic month and a lot of things have changed, for sure.”

He finished at 20-under 260.

It was plenty stressful for others, even those who weren’t playing.

The heartbreak belonged to Justin Lower, who was poised to move into the top 125 in the FedEx Cup to reach the postseason and secure a full card for next season.

But on the final hole, Lower hit his 60-foot birdie putt a little too firm. That left him a 6-foot par putt that would have put him inside the top 125. He missed it to the right and was wiping away tears as he walked off the green.

“I don’t really know what I’m thinking. It sucks to come up this short,” Lower said. “Obviously had some help with the LIV guys and whatnot — I don’t even know if I’m allowed to say that. But I don’t know. There’s positives. But right now, it just flat out sucks.”

The tour has suspended players who signed on with Saudi-funded LIV Golf, and they did not count toward the top 125 in the FedEx Cup. Lower was the equivalent of No. 128 going into the final event of the regular season.

Rickie Fowler looked to be out of luck when he missed the cut on Friday at No. 123. But enough players faded on the weekend that Fowler gets to extend his season for at least another week at the FedEx St. Jude Championship next week.


espn.com

FacebooktwitterpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterpinterestlinkedinmail

Rates & Green Fees:

18 Holes
Monday
All-Day
Excludes Holidays
$35 / cart
$25 / walk
18 Holes
Tues-Thur
All-Day
$45 / cart
$35 / walk
18 Holes
Weekend
Fri-Sun
$55 / cart
$45 / walk
18 Holes
Sat & Sun
After 2 pm
$25 / cart or walk
Weekend Special!
18 Holes
Weekday Holidays
$55 / cart
$45 / walk
Re-Play Special
(18 holes w/ cart)
$25
Great Value
9 Hole Rates Available
Monday – $15 walk, $20 w/ Cart
Tue – Thur $20 walk, $25 w/ Cart
Fri – Sun $25 walk, $30 w/ Cart
Sat/ Sun after 2pm $10 walk, $15 w/ Cart
Single Rider
Cart Available
Add $10
Range Balls $8 / bucket
(2 buckets for $15)
$5 / bag
$3 / warm-up
Range Pass Member
$100 + tax
Non-Member
$120 + tax
Golf Lessons Click Here
Book Online Tee Time Click Here

Contact SFCC

Pro Shop 315-568-5202
Clubhouse 315-568-2676
info@senecafallscountryclub.com

2790 Route 89
Seneca Falls, NY 13148

  

ABOUT SFCC

Since 1925, Seneca Falls Country Club has been one of the premier golf destinations in the Finger Lakes region.

Our meticulously groomed 18-hole championship golf course overlooking Cayuga Lake is the perfect combination of play-ability, beauty and challenge.

For the beginning player, our course is fun and accessible. For the low handicapper, an engaging challenge. And for everyone in between, a compelling par 72 parkland layout whether enjoying your first time around or you’ve played the track for decades.

We embrace our shared history with Seneca Falls, the birthplace of women’s rights and a national historical park. Our first golf pro, Mr. Charles Cambell, came directly from Scotland. In the 1940’s our head pro George McLean was a member of the original Ryder Cup team. We have hosted legendary entertainer Bob Hope and former President Dwight Eishenhower at SFCC. In 2012 Seneca Falls Country Club hosted the NYS Women’s Amateur Championship and our own Club Championship tournament has been contested for over 80 consecutive years.

Retreat to our 115 acres to enjoy competition and camaraderie with friends, refresh in the crisp lake country air and connect with the spirit of the generations who have strolled these same fairways over the past century. We promise an experience that offers a blend of old school country club charm with a welcoming appreciation towards all those who love the game of golf.

INSIDE

Recent Posts

  • Jon Rahm & Davis Thompson set for duel in final round January 23, 2023
  • Who’s ready for the NFC/AFC Championship? January 19, 2023
  • Who’s ready for Dinner tomorrow? January 19, 2023
  • Argentine amateur star makes it to 2023 Masters January 17, 2023
  • Jon Rahm took the win! January 9, 2023
  • Watch out for Rory McIlroy January 3, 2023
  • Underrated Golfers to check out for 2023 December 27, 2022
  • Tiger Wood’s explanation December 19, 2022

POST ARCHIVE

Follow SFCC

FacebooktwitterinstagramFacebooktwitterinstagram

CONTACT US

Pro Shop: 315-568-5202
Clubhouse: 315-568-2676
E-Mail: info@senecafallscountryclub.com

BOOK TEE TIMES

Seneca Falls Country Club
2790 Route 89
Seneca Falls, NY 13148

Member NYSGA & USGA

SEARCH SFCC

©2023 Seneca Falls Country Club