Tom Kim will have a little more time to celebrate one of the biggest victories of his career.
The four-time PGA Tour winner has withdrawn from next week's Baycurrent Classic in Japan after capturing the individual gold medal at the Asian Games, a victory that also earned the 24-year-old South Korean an exemption from his country's mandatory military service.
Kim made sure there would be little drama down the stretch, closing with a bogey-free 6-under 64 at Kasugai Country Club to win by three shots at 18-under 262.
“I came here believing that if I just did my thing, things would work out well in the end,” Kim told reporters. “I tried to maintain that mindset throughout and just play my game.”
In South Korea, able-bodied men are generally required
to serve up to 21 months in the military before turning 28. Asian Games gold medalists, however, receive an exemption and need only complete basic military training.
For Kim, the triumph removes a question that has hung over the careers of many South Korean athletes, including several professional golfers. Former PGA Tour winners Seung-Yul Noh and Sang-Moon Bae both left the game to fulfill their military obligations and struggled to regain their previous form after returning.
Kim said he received some timely encouragement before the final round from Tiger Woods, his Jupiter Links teammate in TGL.
“Just be you. Nothing more, nothing less,” Woods texted.
Kim already had a response ready.
“I think I will send him a photo of me biting my gold medal,” he said.
The gold medal capped a hectic stretch for Kim, who had been competing for the International Team at the Presidents Cup just days earlier. After defeating Wyndham Clark in singles at Medinah, Kim headed to Japan once it became clear the Internationals would again come up short in their bid for a first Presidents Cup victory since 1998.
His teammates Sungjae Im and Si Woo Kim secured their own military-service exemptions by helping South Korea win team gold at the 2023 Asian Games. Now Kim has joined them, and after a career-changing week in Japan, he'll delay his return to the PGA Tour a little longer. Kris Ventura will replace him in the field.
The Baycurrent Classic marks the third stop of the PGA Tour’s eight-event FedEx Cup Fall series and the beginning of a four-tournament international swing. The event returns to Yokohama Country Club, where Xander Schauffele claimed his most recent PGA Tour victory a year ago. Schauffele, who helped the United States retain the Presidents Cup with a 2-2-0 record at Medinah, is back to defend his title.
The field is loaded with star power, including Keegan Bradley, Wyndham Clark, Tony Finau, Rickie Fowler, Max Homa, Billy Horschel, Sungjae Im, Hideki Matsuyama, Min Woo Lee, Collin Morikawa, Adam Scott, Jordan Spieth and Justin Thomas.
Tim Schmitt is the managing editor of Golfweek and the golf coordinator for the USA Today Network.
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Tom Kim WDs from Baycurrent after Asian Games gold medal, military exemption
