Kim Ju-hyung waves to the gallery as he walks off the 18th hole after completing his final round. [AFP]
Kim Ju-hyung waves to the gallery as he walks off the 18th hole after completing his final round. [AFP]

Kim Ju-hyung claimed sole third place at the 126th US Open, which carried a purse of $22.5 million, firing a shot at a comeback.

Playing Sunday (Korean Standard Time) at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club (par 70, 7,440 yards) in Southampton, New York, Kim traded four birdies and four bogeys to finish the final round at even par, closing at a total of 1-under-par 279 for sole third.

Kim finished three strokes behind champion Wyndham Clark of the United States, but his under-par total placed him among just three players to finish in the red at the notoriously demanding Shinnecock Hills — a result he hopes will help him escape a prolonged slump. The finish surpassed his previous best US Open result of tied eighth at the same event in 2023. Kim earned $1,532,530 (about 2.35 billion won) for third place.

In a post-round interview, Kim expressed both joy and relief. "It has been a really difficult time since last year. Nothing was going the way I wanted with my shots, and there were moments when golf felt frightening," he said. "I didn't even have a spot in this tournament and had to come through local qualifying. That's why finishing third on this great stage at Shinnecock Hills feels like a dream. The biggest thing I'm taking away is the confidence that I can do this again."

A three-time PGA Tour winner, Kim endured a severe slump last year, making just one top-10 finish in 26 starts. His world ranking fell far enough that he failed to meet the US Open qualifying criteria this year, forcing him to grind through local qualifying just to reach the main draw.

Kim entered the final round six strokes off the lead and made a shaky start with a bogey on the par-4 1st hole, but recovered with a birdie on the par-4 3rd thanks to a precise iron shot. He wobbled again with a bogey on the par-4 4th, yet steadied himself by holing a tricky 4.2-meter birdie putt on the difficult par-4 8th to turn at even par.

Kim held his ground on the back nine in strong winds, giving back no net strokes with two birdies and two bogeys. He dropped a shot on the par-4 10th but immediately bounced back with a birdie on the par-3 11th. He added another birdie on the par-5 16th to apply pressure on the leaders, only to give one back with a bogey on the par-3 17th.

Wyndham Clark poses with the trophy after winning the US Open. [USGA]
Wyndham Clark poses with the trophy after winning the US Open. [USGA]

Clark entered the final round with a comfortable six-stroke lead but labored to the title, dropping three shots on two birdies and five bogeys. His closing total of 4-under-par 276 was enough to hold off a hard-charging Sam Burns of the United States by one stroke. Clark, who also won the US Open in 2023, reclaimed the title three years later and collected the winner's check of $4.5 million (about 6.9 billion won).

Burns, who had closed to within a stroke of Clark, could not convert a 5-meter birdie putt on the par-4 18th that would have forced a playoff, and had to settle for second.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler of the United States, who was chasing a career Grand Slam, dropped one shot on the final day to finish at even-par 280, sharing fourth place with fellow Americans Keith Mitchell and J.T. Poston.

Im Sung-jae struggled to a 5-over-par 75 in the final round, finishing at 8-over-par 288 to share 43rd place with Michael Kim of the United States. Im managed just one birdie against six bogeys on the day.


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