Tom Kim [main picture] put together a brilliant final round to win the gold medal in the individual category at the Asian Games today – adding another prestigious continental title to his collection, to go along with his Asian Tour Order of Merit crown.

Kim showed today why is one of the game’s most exciting young players, and a four-time winner on the PGA TOUR, when he fired a confident six-under-par 64 for a three-stroke victory. He finished on 18-under on the East Course at Kasugai Country Club, Nagoya, Japan.

Kazuki Higa from Japan, Thailand’s Sadom Kaewkanjana, and Ding Wenyi from China, tied for second and entered a play-off to decide the silver and bronze medal positions.

Higa, last year’s Asian Tour number one, secured the silver after making birdie on the fourth extra hole, while Sadom won bronze, after he made birdie on the first hole of a second play-off. The play-offs were played in the 18^th. Higa had closed with a 66, Sadom a 63 and Ding a 64.

Ding’s disappointment was significantly lessened by the fact that China beat Korea to the team gold.

His performance, along with his team-mate Jin Zihao, who closed with a 66, saw them take the team title by two shots from Korea. Japan claimed the bronze finishing another three shots back. The two best scores from each three-man counted towards the team score.

Kim, aged 24, started the day with a one-shot cushion and pulled away from the field from the outset. The 2020-2022 Asian Tour Order of Merit winner birdied holes two, four, six and eight before leaving the chasing pack trailing in his wake with a birdie on 11 and eagle on 13. He dropped his only shot of the day on 17, by which time he had well and truly sealed the individual title.

That dropped shot on the penultimate hole proved to be costly though in the team competition. Korea were tied with China over the closing holes while Kim’s countryman Mun Doyeob also dropped a shot at the same hole.

Consolation for Kim is that his gold medal means he will be excused from his mandatory military service, except for a few weeks of basic training. All able-bodied males in Korea are obligated to serve between 18 and 21 months in the military once they turn 19. They can postpone the date of their service, but without a significant cultural justification, like an Olympic medal, service is mandatory. The gold medal in the men’s or team competitions was sufficient.

In the women’s tournament India’s Pranavi Sharath Urs won the individual gold, with China claiming the team gold.