Tom Kim responds to backlash for damaging green

As far as Tom Kim was concerned, Sunday was nothing short of a disaster.

Kim was 46th in the FedEx Cup standings on the 16th tee in his final round at the FedEx St Jude Invitational at TPC Southwind last weekend. He was cruising towards the second leg of the lucrative PGA Tour Playoffs.

A bogey and two double bogeys later and Kim was 51st, one outside the number needed to make it the BMW Championship. The collapse allowed US Ryder Cup captain Keegan Bradley to sneak into this week’s latest $20m showpiece at Castle Pines.

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Kim’s 6-6 meltdown on his final three holes may have cut his season short, but it was a flashpoint on the 12th hole that really got tongues wagging on social media.

After missing a short birdie putt, the South Korean lashed out and made a dent in the green in frustration. He slammed down the spot on the putting surface that he seemed to think impacted his six-footer and appeared to walk away without repairing the damage.

That, unsurprisingly, proved a very tough watch for many golf fans (and greenkeepers), who were quick to jump on Kim’s back over the incident.

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It was reported that his caddie Paul Tesori later fixed the indent, and Kim has now released a statement on his Instagram responding to the subsequent backlash.

His Instagram story read:

“It’s been brought to my attention about my frustration shown yesterday on the 12th green, I will never lie to my peers and fans because I have too much respect and gratitude towards them, I wasn’t aware that I had made that big of a damage on the green cause if I did I would’ve never just left without repairing it, but I was clearly wrong and will take full responsibility of my actions and will be better going forward.”

“Thank you and I apologise again and thank you for your support throughout a tough year.”

A lesson learned then, perhaps, for the uber-talented 22-year-old ahead of the 2025 season.

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.