Korean star Kim eyes a rare title treble at Shriners Children’s Open

South Korean Joohyung Kim is in line for a third straight win when he defends his Shriners Children’s Open crown at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas this week, following victories in 2022 and last year.

The young star, nicknamed ‘Tom’ Kim after saying some years ago that he was a fan of the comic character Thomas the Tank Engine, is also trying to figure out how he will celebrate the “three-peat” if it comes about on Sunday, the PGA Tour said.

The 22-year-old successfully defended at TPC Summerlin a year ago to become the fourth youngest player in history to win three times on the tour. A return to a successful venue has Kim relishing the opportunity to become the first since Steve Stricker (John Deere Classic 2009, 2010, 2011) to win the same event in three consecutive years, and only the 10th player to do so since World War II.

“I think it's a very, very cool week just to be even having a chance of that. I think that's the coolest part,” said Kim ahead of the fourth PGA Tour Fall event. “My last event was at the Presidents Cup, so game is feeling really good … just trying to be really focused on my game plan and try to have a shot on Sunday would be amazing,” added the Korean, who posted a 1-2-1 (win-loss-tie) record at Royal Montreal recently.

While his rise has hit headlines around the world over the past two years, Kim went viral on social media and also featured in the Netflix series Full Swing after revealing how he intended to celebrate after accomplishing another Vegas victory last year. 

“I’m going to go back home and I’m going to finish a piece of chocolate that I wanted to finish, so I’m going to do that,” Kim said a year ago. “And then I’m going to order room service, and I’m going to go to bed. Then I’m going to wake up at 3 and take my 6:30 a.m. flight. It’s going to be exciting.”

Asked about that celebration, Kim explained: “It was a very, very, just a very pure, honest reply from me. That's exactly what I did. Definitely tasted very, very sweet. I can still remember it. It was back-to-back and having that last piece, because I saved it on Saturday night, it was very sweet. I don't have a piece of chocolate with me this week, but we'll find something else.”

In 2022 and 2023, Kim had weekend scores of 62 and 66 en route to victories over Patrick Cantlay and Matthew NeSmith by three strokes (2022) and Adam Hadwin by one last year. Kim says he likes the track at TPC Summerlin, which often yields low scores, as it fits his straight-shooting and attacking style of play.

“If you plot yourself well the first 12 holes, you get to 13, it's a very, very accessible par-5, really short par-3, drivable par-4, and another par-5 right away. So there is a lot of birdies out there. Good ball striking gets rewarded. The greens are so perfect and stays on your line,” said Kim, who tees up in the first two rounds alongside the last two FedEx Cup Fall winners, Kevin Yu and Matt McCarty.

“I think that's why I have been able to do well. You can't just hit it 180 ball speed and hit it everywhere. You have to hit it straight. That's been a strength of my game. I think the last two years, because I was so focused on getting my job done instead of thinking about trying to win.”
Kim enters the week ranked 55th in the FedEx Cup points list, with the 51st-60th ranked player after Fall qualifying for the first two Signature events in 2025. He registered two top-10s this season, a T4 at the RBC Canadian Open and a playoff loss to Scottie Scheffler at the Travelers Championship, during a nine-week stretch which he embarked in mid-season in an effort to find his top game.

“I think 2024 was a big learning step to my career. I was dealt some tough situations and I thought I handled it as good as I actually played really well and I made nine, 10 changes before I started that nine-week stretch. I felt like I put my head down and got to work. Definitely trended very well at the end the year,” said Kim.

“It sucks to finish 51st (to miss an exemption into every Signature event in 2025), but from about I was before that, I couldn't do anything better. Presidents Cup, I felt like was a really good week for me, because going off that stretch and taking four weeks off and then playing Presidents Cup at a high, intense level, to be able to perform pretty well in my eyes, was good to see. Showed my little off-season work coming through.”