Michael S. Kim admits to playing for ‘huge’ FedExCup points table leap at the Shriners Children’s Open

Michael S. Kim had a strong outing this weekend at the Shriners Children’s Open. The 31-year-old American golfer, who’s had a tough season so far, carded 62 on Sunday (October 20) at TPC Summerlin in Las Vegas to match his lowest career round. He finished T5 alongside K.H. Lee and Davis Thompson in the competition.

Kim, who arrived at the Shriners Children’s Open on the back of a three-event missed cut streak, impressed fans with 10 birdies in the final round. Owing to his season-best finish, the golfer jumped multiple spots in the FedExCup Fall ranking. The World No.180 golfer, who came into the event sitting 129th on the table, is currently projected to leap over 30 spots to be 96th in the standings.

The golfer soon revealed that he was attempting to make the ‘huge’ task of getting inside the 125 rankings this weekend. He admitted to getting a “huge boost of confidence” with the sudden leap in the rankings.

Michael S. Kim said, in his post-event press conference in Las Vegas (as quoted by ASAP Sports):

“Trying to get inside that 125, it's huge. Trying to lock up my playing privileges for next year, The PLAYERS and all that. So, a good relief, but also know I still have to keep playing well in the next two or three events.”

Michael S. Kim, who was on his way to miss the 2025 PGA Tour card, dubbed it ‘awesome’ to be inside the projected top 100 of the rankings.

He added:

“It's awesome. It's not a huge monkey off my back, but a decent sized one. I knew these next -- including this one, these next few events would be huge for keeping my card for next year. To be able to pull off a round like I did today is a huge boost of confidence for the upcoming tournaments.”

However, Michael S. Kim didn’t seem too keen on celebrating just yet. The 2018 John Deere Classic winner said he ‘still has to see’ if his Tour card for next year is secured as there are “still a lot of players left.” He earned a $259,000 paycheck for the result.

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Michael S. Kim’s 2024 season so far

Michael S. Kim joined the PGA Tour in 2016. However, the golfer is yet to have a breakout season. The 31-year-old has had an underwhelming 2024 season marked by multiple missed cuts. The golfer had a standout performance finishing T6 at The American Express early on in the year. He earned $310,800 for the result, his biggest payday of the year.

Since then, the golfer has missed cuts at events like the WM Phoenix Open, THE PLAYERS Championship, and the John Deere Classic. He has now made a comeback by finishing T5 at the Shriners Children’s Open.

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Listed below is the complete breakdown of Michael S. Kim’s season so far:

• Sony Open in Hawaii (Waialae Country Club) – T42 – $25,913
• The American Express (Pete Dye Stadium Course) – T6 – $310,800
• Farmers Insurance Open (Torrey Pines South Course) – T37 – $40,050
• WM Phoenix Open (TPC Scottsdale) – Missed Cut – $0
• Mexico Open at Vidanta (Vidanta Vallarta) – Missed Cut – $0
• Cognizant Classic (PGA National Resort & Spa) – Missed Cut – $0
• Puerto Rico Open (Grand Reserve Country Club) – T23 – $34,422
• THE PLAYERS Championship (TPC Sawgrass) – Missed Cut – $0
• Valspar Championship (Innisbrook Resort) – T33 – $39,410
• Texas Children's Houston Open (Memorial Park Golf Course) – T64 – $19,383
• Valero Texas Open (TPC San Antonio) – Missed Cut – $0
• Corales Puntacana Championship (Puntacana Resort & Club) – T14 – $71,000
• THE CJ CUP Byron Nelson (TPC Craig Ranch) – Missed Cut – $0
• Myrtle Beach Classic (Dunes Golf & Beach Club) – T20 – $43,800
• Charles Schwab Challenge (Colonial Country Club) – Missed Cut – $0
• RBC Canadian Open (Hamilton Golf & Country Club) – T14 – $152,750
• Rocket Mortgage Classic (Detroit Golf Club) – T52 – $22,650
• John Deere Classic (TPC Deere Run) – Missed Cut – $0
• ISCO Championship (Keene Trace Golf Club) – Missed Cut – $0
• Barracuda Championship (Tahoe Mountain Club) – T24 – $33,400
• 3M Open (TPC Twin Cities) – Missed Cut – $0
• Wyndham Championship (Sedgefield Country Club) – Withdrawn – $0
• Procore Championship (Silverado Resort) – Missed Cut – $0
• Sanderson Farms Championship (Country Club of Jackson) – Missed Cut – $0
• Black Desert Championship (Black Desert Resort Golf Course) – Missed Cut – $0
• Shriners Children's Open (TPC Summerlin) – T5 – $259,000

Having found his form in Las Vegas, it’ll be interesting to see how Michael S. Kim finishes the rest of the FedEx Fall schedule.