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Kim Si-woo holds the winner’s trophy after the American Express golf tournament on the Pete Dye Stadium Course at PGA West in La Quinta, California, Sunday. (AP-Yonhap) |
Kim Si-woo won the American Express and captured his third PGA Tour title, securing his first victory since 2017.
Kim birdied two of the final three holes to card a bogey-free 8-under 64 in the final round to edge out late-storming Patrick Cantlay, who got 11 birdies in the final round alone, by a stroke on Sunday.
“My heart was very firm in the last five holes and Patrick kept making birdies,” Kim said in the interview after winning the tournament.
“But I was not trying to be too aggressive and just kept patience. And I got a chance in the 16th because of the helping wind.”
The 25-year-old South Korean golfer wrapped up the tournament at 23-under 265 on the Pete Dye-designated Stadium Course at PGA West in La Quinta, California, clinching $1.2 million in prize money.
Sunday’s victory gave Kim a big boost in the official PGA all-around ranking, moving him up to 44th place from the previous week’s 91st spot.
Kim’s winning drought lasted a little over 3 1/2 years since his previous two titles at the Players Championship in May 2017 and the Wyndham Championship in August 2016.
“I had many chances since the Players. I had many chances to win, but I couldn’t make it, but finally I made it,” Kim said during the post-tournament news conference. “So I tried to keep my composure and I made it. I’m so happy with that.”
By Kan Hyeong-woo (
hwkan@heraldcorp.com)
