Updated

Updated · Fox News · Oct 5

Tom Kim Wins Asian Games Gold With Final-Round 64, Securing 18- to 21-Month Military Exemption

Updated

Updated · Fox News · Oct 5

Tom Kim Wins Asian Games Gold With Final-Round 64, Securing 18- to 21-Month Military Exemption

Q: With Tom Kim securing his freedom, what tragic fate awaits his South Korean teammate who missed the exemption after losing team gold?

Tom Kim’s teammate S.H. Kim now faces South Korea’s mandatory military service, likely costing him about 18 to 21 months away from golf after South Korea settled for team silver behind China. That is the immediate consequence of missing the exemption route. Tom Kim secured his own exemption by winning individual gold at the 2026 Asian Games, but S.H. Kim did not because South Korea failed to win the men’s team title and he did not medal individually. Reports around the event made clear that the team gold was his main realistic path, especially with injuries affecting his individual chances. The sporting cost could be severe. S.H. Kim had already spoken openly before the event about the pressure, saying a gold would help him stay on the PGA Tour. Missing out means his career could be interrupted during prime competitive years, with likely effects on ranking, status, earnings and momentum. The personal timing also makes it harsher. Unlike 24-year-old Tom Kim, S.H. Kim, 28, appears to have run out of realistic future exemption opportunities. The next Summer Olympics are in 2028 and the next Asian Games in 2030, but coverage of the event emphasized that “his time is up.” So while Tom Kim leaves Japan with freedom and security, S.H. Kim leaves facing conscription and a potentially major setback to his professional career.

Q: Did Brooks Koepka’s silent resurgence in Scotland just prove that LIV golfers can seamlessly dominate traditional tours again?

No. Brooks Koepka’s tie for sixth at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship was an encouraging result, not proof that LIV golfers can seamlessly dominate traditional tours again. The evidence points the other way. Koepka finished four shots behind winner Adrian Meronk, another LIV player, so Scotland did show that LIV players can still contend on a strong traditional circuit. But Koepka did not win, and one top-10 after a difficult year is too small a sample to support a broad claim about dominance. His own recent record adds caution. Koepka called his 2026 PGA Tour season “pathetic” after missing the FedExCup Playoffs, with only one top-10 in 16 PGA Tour starts and persistent putting issues. Even at St. Andrews, the result looked more like a rebound than a return to peak form. Reports around the event tied the improvement partly to a putter and fairway-wood setup change, plus a month away to reassess. The field in Scotland was credible, with Ryder Cup players, DP World Tour regulars and several LIV names, so the finish matters. It was also Koepka’s best worldwide result of the year, which makes it significant as a momentum signal. But “silent resurgence” is a fairer description than “seamless domination.” What Scotland really showed is that top LIV-caliber players remain capable of competing immediately on established tours when given access. It did not show that Koepka, or LIV golfers broadly, are ready to roll back onto traditional tours and consistently overpower them.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Oct 5

A final-round 64 gave Tom Kim a three-shot victory in the Asian Games men’s golf event, earning South Korea’s 24-year-old star a gold medal and exemption from mandatory military service.
South Korean law generally requires able-bodied men to serve 18 to 21 months, but athletes can avoid it by winning any Olympic medal or Asian Games gold.
Kim entered the final round with a one-shot lead and surged early with four birdies in his first eight holes before an eagle on the 13th put him in control.
Tiger Woods texted Kim before the round — “Just be you. Nothing more, nothing less,” according to Yonhap News Agency.
The win caps a strong 2026 for Kim, who also captured the Scottish Open and climbed more than 70 spots in the world rankings after starting the year outside the top 100.