Energized Tom Kim moves into contention at WM Phoenix Open

PHOENIX — Tom Kim loves the noise, and the louder fans get, the better he tends to play.

The 22-year-old South Korean star made birdies on three of the par-3 challenges at TPC Scottsdale, including on the famous 16th hole nicknamed the Coliseum, on Friday (Saturday, Manila time), as he worked his way into contention at the WM Phoenix Open.

He hit a 5-under 66 to trail 36-hole leader Thomas Detry (64) by three strokes in T4 as he challenges for a fourth PGA Tour career title for the second straight week.

“Yeah, it's been solid. I've just been executing my game plan really well. Been rolling the putter really good, and off the tee it's been pretty steady. Just a lot of good consistent golf, and hope to keep it going the next two days,” said Kim, who finished T7 at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am last week.

Playing alongside close friend and World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler and Max Homa, Kim ran off with four consecutive birdies from the 13th hole, all from within 14 feet which culminated with an eight-foot conversion on the 16th hole that has an impressive stadium atmosphere and houses approximately 20,000 boisterous fans.

He made two more birdies against a lone bogey on his inward nine and is relishing a weekend charge in front of the famous crowds who has made the WM Phoenix Open one of the most popular tournaments on Tour.

Since bursting onto the scene in 2022, Kim has shown himself to relish in cauldron-liked atmospheres, as proven in his two Presidents Cup appearances where he emerged as one of the International Team’s talismen with his bravado and energy on the golf course.

“Just rode the momentum really well. That's the biggest thing. Didn't do anything different with the game plan, just executed when I needed to. It's electric out there, and you can't really hear anything but noise out there (on the 16th hole),” said Kim, who is making his third start at TPC Scottdale’s Stadium Course and finished T17 here last season.

“The crowds I think is the biggest thing. It's so much fun here for me as a player. I like when the crowds bring energy, and this is the week if you can play well and get near the leaders and you get things going, the crowd definitely goes behind you. I think it helps you actually win golf tournaments. I think it definitely gets your momentum going. When you make one putt outside 30 feet, the crowd gets louder than you expect it to be.”

With the new putter he put into his bag last week behaving nicely – he currently ranks fifth in Strokes Gained: Putting so far – Kim has been rather stress-free through two rounds where he is 6-for-7 in Scrambling.

“I've had a few good par putts the last two days, and those things just kind of keep momentum going. It helps you not put stress on your golf game a lot. When those little things kind of happen for four days, that's when you have a really good week. It's been good so far,” he said.

“The next two days I'm not going to try to do anything, just put myself in better spots to maximize my opportunities.”

Playing alongside Scheffler, who also shot a 66 for T12 on 7-under, has also been fun for Kim who has struck a strong bond with the reigning FedExCup champion.

“I haven't played with Scottie for a while now. It's been, I think, since the Olympics maybe. I haven't really played with him in a competitive round,” he said. “It was fun the first two days. Obviously he's always going to play well, so it kind of helps you to see him hit good shots. It kind of gets your momentum going.”

A quartet of Asians – C.T. Pan (66), Kevin Yu (67), Sungjae Im (69) and Byeong Hun An (70) – sit on 4-under while two-time WM Phoenix Open champion Hideki Matsuyama shot a second straight 70 for 2-under, 10 strokes off the pace.