WATCH: Tom Kim receives piggyback ride from agent following NASTY ankle injury at Open Championship
The urge to succeed sometimes makes a person go through some of the hardest battles. The old saying “no pain, no gain” was seen on Friday during the second round of the Open Championship, as Tom Kim played through the pain barrier. He was spotted wobbling on the course but managed to make the cut. Kim followed this with a strong performance in Round 3 as well.
A video of him is now going viral, where his agent can be seen carrying him. The South Korean’s injury was so severe that he received a piggyback ride. “It’s grade one tear. I’m barely walking but it’s cool how I got away with that,” Kim said about his injury. He would play the later rounds taped up. However, this did not dampen his courage, as he continued to fight on.
To say Kim has had a hard time at major championships would be an understatement. At the PGA Championship, he got soaked in a mud bath. While he did get himself clean, the video of him asking others to smell his hand went viral. Just as fans would have started to forget this, another viral moment with Kim resurfaced.
Tom Kim looking for top-five finish at the Open
In the world of sports, several stories have previously emerged of players playing, despite a severe injury. One of the most iconic events of this type came at the US Open in 2008. The legendary Tiger Woods played and won the whole tournament on one leg with an ACL injury on the other. While Tom Kim might not win the major here, he can hope for a top-five finish.
Despite the ankle injury, Kim had an impressive outing in round three. He managed to fire three consecutive bogeys from the fourth to the sixth hole. A couple of birdies at the 14th and 17th hole saw him finish with three-under 68. At the end of the round, he tied for the eleventh spot on the leaderboard. If he does manage to break into the top-five spots, it would be a big achievement in his young career.
Kim turned professional in 2018. In his short career, he has previously appeared in six majors. In those events, the highest he managed was a top 8 finish at the recent US Open. Last year he finished at 47 in the Open Championship. Kim is likely to surpass that ranking. He will have to battle it out against the likes of Rory McIlroy and three others who are all tied at the 11th position, heading into the final round.
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