A closing 64 at Kasugai
Tom Kim did not need a late scare to make this interesting. He had one anyway. The 24-year-old South Korean won the Asian Games golf gold medal earlier today, closing with a 64 at Kasugai Country Club East Course to finish 18 under par and three strokes clear.
Kim led after the opening rounds and kept his foot down. He played the front nine in 4 under, a 31, then added birdies at the 11th and the par-5 13th. With four holes left he held a four-shot cushion. He dropped one shot coming in, which was enough to trim the margin to three but nowhere near enough to matter.
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What the medal is really worth
The gold carries more than a trophy. Under South Korea’s rules, an Asian Games gold in golf, or any Olympic medal, exempts an athlete from the country’s mandatory 18-month military service. Kim now has to complete only four weeks of basic training instead. His teammate S.H. Kim benefits from the same exemption through the team silver, as South Korea finished second in the team competition.
That changes the calendar for a player who is still early in his career. Eighteen months away from competition would have cut deep into his prime years. Four weeks is a manageable gap.
“I tried not to think about it. I just tried to play the best for my country,” Kim said afterwards. He added that handling the pressure this week should help him in future seasons.
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