WM Phoenix Open Final Round: 3-Under
Third Consecutive Top-10 Finish
Matsuyama 2nd, Scheffler 3rd, Kim Joo Hyung 35th
Kim Siwoo once again came up short in his bid to add another championship trophy to his collection.
On February 8 (local time) at the TPC Scottsdale Stadium Course (par 71, 7,261 yards) in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA, he carded a 3-under 68 in the fourth round of the PGA Tour WM Phoenix Open, which had a total purse of 9.6 million dollars, to finish tied for third at 15-under 269. He had hoped to capture his fifth career PGA Tour title and his first in 3 years and 1 month since the Sony Open in January 2023, but after a tie for sixth at The American Express and a runner-up finish at the Farmers Insurance Open, he had to settle for three consecutive top-10 finishes.
Starting the day tied for second, one shot off the lead, Kim picked up momentum with birdies on holes 1 and 3. A come-from-behind victory seemed possible. His tee shots and iron shots remained sharp afterward, but his putting did not cooperate, and he struggled to lower his score. After a monotonous run of pars over 11 holes, he finally made a birdie on the par-5 15th by reaching near the green with his second shot.
Kim Siwoo is hitting a tee shot on the third hole during the fourth round of the WM Phoenix Open. Scottsdale (USA) = Reuters/Yonhap
His chase lost steam when he narrowly missed a birdie on the par-3 16th, a hole reminiscent of the Roman-era gladiatorial arena, the Colosseum. On the par-4 17th (348 yards), he drove the green but misjudged his putt, forcing himself into another approach shot and ultimately settling for par.
The victory went to Chris Gotterup of the United States. Firing a 7-under 64, he caught Hideki Matsuyama of Japan at 16-under 268 and then drained a winning birdie on the first playoff hole, the par-4 18th. It was his second win of the season following the Sony Open, the season opener last month, and his fourth career title. He took home 1.728 million dollars in prize money (about 2.5 billion won).
Matsuyama was on the verge of claiming his 12th career victory but failed to close it out with a bogey on the 18th in regulation, and then unraveled in the playoff by hitting his tee shot into the water. World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler of the United States lived up to his status by posting a bogey-free round with seven birdies to finish tied for third. Michael Thorbjornsen, Akshay Bhatia (both USA), and Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark also joined the tie for third group.
Among Korean players, Kim Joo Hyung shot a 3-under 68 to climb to a tie for 35th at 6-under 278. Lee Seungtaek, who made his PGA Tour debut this year, also picked up three shots to finish tied for 48th at 4-under 280. Kim Sung Hyun dropped one shot and closed the tournament tied for 54th at 3-under 281. Brooks Koepka of the United States, returning from LIV Golf, missed the cut.
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