Last Week's Runner-up Kim Juhyung "Riding a Good Momentum"

Challenging First Win of the Year at Rocket Mortgage Classic
Rising Momentum with Runner-up in Travelers Championship Playoff
"Seems to Be Moving in the Right Direction"

‘PGA star attraction’ Kim Joo-hyung has returned to his former form.

Kim Joo-hyung (left) is hitting an iron shot on the 17th hole during the practice round of the Rocket Mortgage Classic. [Detroit=AFP·Yonhap News]

He has also equipped himself with strong confidence. At the official press conference for the Rocket Mortgage Classic (total prize money $9.2 million) held on the 26th (local time) at Detroit Golf Club (par 72, 7,370 yards) in Michigan, USA, he explained, "Everything is flowing well. I think I have been playing good golf overall this year, but I just haven't had any significant results yet." He added, "My game seems to be moving in the right direction overall. I want to sharpen my performance a bit more as I participate in this week's tournament."

Kim Joo-hyung narrowly missed his first victory last week at the Travelers Championship. He finished as runner-up after a playoff against world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (USA). This is his best personal result this year. "Last week was really amazing. I think I did my best to win. Looking at the list of players who participated, they were all formidable competitors, so achieving this result among them is remarkable. I was happy that a very close friend of mine could win."

Kim showed a more mature attitude, saying, "I think I learn more through failure." He said, "In most tournaments, I experience regrets and defeats. Only one person can take the trophy home. Winning is truly happy and enjoyable. But just being able to compete with the world No. 1 golfer has a very special meaning."

This week, he will make his ninth consecutive PGA Tour start. Continuing this busy schedule is to secure a definite position ahead of the playoffs in the fall, where players ranked within the top 70 in the FedEx Cup standings compete. His current FedEx Cup ranking has risen from 61st last week to 39th.

Defending champion Rickie Fowler (USA), along with Kim Sung-hyun, Lee Kyung-hoon, Akshay Bhatia, and Will Zalatoris (all USA), will participate. Cameron Young (USA), who shot a ‘dream score’ of 59 in the third round of the Travelers Championship, will also appear. The winner’s prize money for this tournament is $1.65 million. The course is known for being easy and producing low scores.