The Genesis Scottish Open at The Renaissance Club turned into one of those Sundays where the winner almost got lost in the noise. Tom Kim closed with a clean 64 to win his 4th career PGA Tour title, but for most of the back nine it was Rory McIlroy putting on the highlight reel while Kim quietly kept making birdies.
McIlroy's tee shot on the par-4 14th sailed all the way to the green — hit with a 3-wood, not driver.
That shot on 14 summed up the kind of round McIlroy was having. He was 6-under on the day at one point and clawing back into real contention, sitting 2 shots off the lead as the 2nd-ranked player in the world. Not every swing was pure, either — he hit one tee shot that hooked wildly off-line at 142 mph ball speed and reportedly cracked, "Ohhhhh my god. I'm so bad at golf," which is the kind of line that only lands as a joke when you're still somehow tied for 4th.
While Rory was doing Rory things, Kim just kept grinding. He came into the final round chasing the leaders and ripped off birdies early to take control, then started pulling away for good.
Kim's birdie putt stretched his lead to 3 shots over the chasing pack.
Min Woo Lee wasn't going anywhere either. He clawed back to within 1 shot of Kim late, playing some of the cleanest golf of the week down the stretch before ultimately settling for solo 2nd.
Min Woo Lee pulled within 1 shot of the lead late in the final round.
Kim ultimately closed it out with a clutch up-and-down for par to seal the bogey-free 64, capping off his 1st win since 2023 — a stretch reportedly measured at 1,001 days between titles. According to Forbes and PGA Tour reporting, Kim started the day trailing leaders Matt Fitzpatrick and Michael Thorbjornsen before ripping off 3 birdies in his first 7 holes and never looking back, finishing at -17 to become the 1st South Korean player to win the Scottish Open.
Kim was visibly emotional afterward, ending a nearly 4-year wait for a win.
The finish also produced one of the year's better betting stories — Kim went off at +8800 odds, and according to Yahoo Sports one bettor reportedly cashed a ticket worth over $4 million on the long shot. Kim's win is worth $1.575 million and puts him right back in the mix heading into the year's remaining majors and the FedEx Cup push, while McIlroy leaves Scotland with more highlight-reel proof that his ball-striking is trending in the right direction ahead of The Open.