Tom Kim was seen crying in the clubhouse after he missed out on a medal
A South Korean golfer broke down in tears after he ended his round with a double bogey, meaning he could now face mandatory military conscription.
Tom Kim finished eighth at the Olympic golf tournament after shooting two over par on the 18th, destroying his hopes of a bronze medal.
The rules in his home country dictate that he can only circumvent conscription if he gains a medal at the Olympics or a gold at the Asian Games. A win in a major will not do.
Kim has another Asian Games to go, and the Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028, before he passes the cut-off point at 28.
He was captured on video wiping away tears in the Olympic clubhouse as his countdown toward conscription continues.
“[I’ve] never been really emotional after a round,” Kim said after Sunday’s final round.
“I think these emotions are surprising but I think it’s just all the hard work I’ve done this year to put myself in this position, those things are coming out.
“Just the things Scottie [Scheffler] said to me after the round really kind of came out and I’m just trying to hold it together.”
In a thrilling finish, Team Great Britain’s Tommy Fleetwood secured the silver medal, just a stroke behind the American star.
Meanwhile, Kim, who already has three PGA Tour event victories, entered the final afternoon of play on Sunday three strokes out of bronze but dipped to eighth after his final-hole flub.
While Kim spent much of his childhood around southeast Asia and Oceania, including stints in Australia, Thailand and the Philippines, he was born in South Korea’s capital city of Seoul and is the son of former professional golfer Kim Chang-ik. Kim was the Korean Tour Player of the Year in 2021 and earned a PGA Tour card for the 2022-23 season.
Korean men are required to be conscripted by the age of 28, a difficult age for many athletes who must take a lengthy hiatus during the prime of their careers.
One notable example is Kim’s compatriot Bae Sang-moon, who won PGA events in 2013 and 2014 but was forced into a 21-month conscription period the following year, posting just one T-45 finish in the 17 events upon his return and briefly losing his Tour card.
Asked about Bae, Kim said: “It doesn’t worry me at all.”
“It’s the way our country works, and good golf takes care of everything. Just because it happened to him doesn’t mean it happens to other people. You can’t say that it affected him at all. There could be different things that could have happened. I’m not really thinking about it. It’s not on my mind at all, I’m just trying to focus on my game.”
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