Tom Kim’s 6-under-par final round at the Asian Games on Saturday helped secure a gold medal and a discharge from South Korea’s military service.
The win was payoff for Kim, who left the Presidents Cup at Medinah Antipolis next Sunday in Chicago to fly to Japan to compete in the tournament at Kasugai Antipolis. It landed at five o’clock on Tuesday and was in use for three hours later while the jet-lagged partner was there.
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“I don’t even feel like it’s the day after the tournament starts for me,” Kim said.
Able-bodied South Korean men should be required to complete 18-21 months of military service before they turn 28. The government gives vacations to Asian Games event winners and those who take home Olympic medals of any color. Kim missed out on the 2024 Paris Olympics when he finished eighth in men’s golf.
The 24-year-old Kim finished 18th under-par at the 2016 Asian Games to win the event by three shots. His last chance to vacation, unless he won this week, was probably the 2018 Los Angeles Olympics, when he was 26.
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“I came here believing that if I just did my thing, things would work out well in the end,” Kim said. “I tried to keep the mindset throughout and just play my game.”
Kim woke up on Saturday after reading the news from golf legend and inspired TGL teammate Tiger Woods saying, “Be yourself. Nothing more, nothing less.”
A reply hasn’t just been sent yet, but Kim said, “I think I’m going to send a picture of him biting a gold medal.”