2022 Shriners Children Open Leaderboard, Scores, Rankings: Tom Kim beats Patrick Cantlay for second win
Tom Kim could officially be he after beating Patrick Cantlay in Sunday’s final round of the 2022 Shriners Open Children’s Tournament for a second victory on the PGA Tour. Winning for the second time in two months, the 20-year-old superstar’s appearance at the 2022 Presidents Cup is probably just the beginning.
Starting the day at 19 and trailing, Kim quickly fell behind as Cantlay opened with a birdie of his own. In the lock jump with veteran caddy Joe Skovron, Kim was undisturbed. The Korean connected in the first match of the day in the fourth par 4 and scored two more games at 8-9 to make it 3 under 32 and have a two-stroke advantage.
This comfortable margin will be short-lived as Cantlay sees his shot early in the ninth round. With consecutive birdies on days 11 and 12, the pair advanced into the final third of TPC Summerlin all squared.
Kim and Cantlay continued to go back and forth before coming to a 17 draw with 24 under. Trading analysis on a difficult par 3, Cantlay’s tee shot on the 72nd hole finally sealed his fate. Finding his native area, the world number 4 tried to play from the broom and put the golf ball at his feet before making an unplayable shot and hitting his fourth shot into the water. Leading up to a treble, all Kim needed was a routine point for his second win in his last four games.
Known for being automatic in clutch situations, it’s not Cantlay, but Kim himself, who holds the steady clutch. Visiting TPC Summerlin for the week, he became the first player on the PGA Tour to do this since Joaquin Niemann at Rocket Mortgage Classic 2021 and the first to do so in victory since JT Poston at Wyndham 2019… champion.
Constantly putting pressure on his playing opponent, this win shows the ways in which Kim can win in the future. Out on the field Sunday at the Wyndham Championship for his first win on the PGA Tour, this winner’s trip to the circle makes a significant difference not only to the competition but to how it is reached. get it.
Kim is never flustered when Cantlay hits back and if he does, his poker face is strong enough to secure a seat at a big money table on stage. Relying on his short game at the right times, his combination of stability, touch and a bit of dexterity makes the 20-year-old not only fun to watch but fun to start with.
With the win, Kim became the first player since Tiger Woods in 1996 to win the PGA TOUR twice before turning 21.
While Compare with Tiger Woods Far-fetched, it almost feels Tiger-esque. Slowly draining life into the rest of the field, Kim never blinked in the face of adversity. When he gets punched, he punches back. When faced with sticky situations, he plays cautiously and aggressively. And when given the opportunity to step on his neck, he took a giant step in more ways than one. Rank: A +
Here are the rest of our scores for the 2022 Shriners Children Open.
T2. Patrick Cantlay (-21): We may never see such a 72nd hole from Cantlay again as the 2017 Shriners Children Open winner hits a magic triple on the last hole to hand the trophy to Kim. While some consider it another quality outing for Cantlay – who finished second at TPC Summerlin aside from his win – he needs to start dropping these tournaments. After a season in which he lost two playoffs and was once again runner-up, the Californian has admitted he’s tired of falling short. Yes, he’s got eight wins in his PGA Tour career, but with talent, consistency and rock solid spirit, that certainly feels light. Grade A
7. Sungjae Im (-19): It was a beautiful defense for Im, who was almost perfect except for the 70 in Round 2 that knocked him out of the tournament. In Shriners’ most recent two children’s expansions, Im only lost to six golfers in total. The question now is how close can he get to No. Over the past five years, Im’s Data Golf’s ratings have been as follows: 230-80-30-25-15. Right now, he’s number 11. Will he be able to make it to the top 5 or even close to number one in the next few years? Grade A-
T8. Jason Day (-18): The once-big-winner closed with 63 to jump into the top 10, and it makes me wonder what World Days have been up to in the past few years. So I dive into his stats and finish. Day hasn’t won since the 2018 Wells Fargo Championship, but he has finished in the top 20 in more than 20% of his events in each of the past four years. The biggest problems for Day are with his gritty play, where he meets a top 25 player for average play. He also went from being the best pitcher in the world to being a good player. Hopefully the Shriners, which have been his only individual top 10 since January, will be a good start for him in 2023. Grade A
T12. Davis Thompson (-16): Remember this name. Or should I say, remember the name? Thompson took the lead after the first round of the 2020 US Open at Winged Foot when he was still an amateur in Georgia. After a good year in 2022 on the Korn Ferry Tour — Thompson has four top 10 finishes, including one win — he’s off to a good PGA Tour starting this fall with three cuts, including a T9 at the Fortinet Championship and this week’s T12. Better news? He’s been flushing it all week and is the worst pitcher of anyone in the top 19 on this leaderboard. He’s someone to keep an eye on for the next month. Grade A-
T28. Patrick Welch (-13): You might ask, “Wait, who in the world is Patrick Welch?” That’s a perfectly reasonable question. A: He’s an Oklahoma amateur, ranked 44th in the world, side-playing and beating over 100 pros this week. Here’s a look at his wild swing, which must have been in action as he finished the top 25 in the field on both approach and tee-to-green hits. Rank: A +
The First Cut podcast team is back to bring you their recap of the Shriners Children Open and LIV Bangkok events. Follow and listen to The First Cut on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
