​NORTH BERWICK, Scotland (AP) — Tom Kim closed with a bogey-free 6-under 64 to win the Scottish Open by two shots, marking his first PGA Tour title since the fall of 2023 and signaling that his game is hitting its stride after spending most of the season outside the world’s top 100. He had finished third at the U.S. Open and then outlasted a strong field and a marathon day at The Renaissance Club.
Kim, who at one point climbed as high as No. 11 in the world when he captured a Las Vegas title nearly three years ago, delivered the decisive blow from 203 yards to six feet on the par-4 16th hole, giving him a two-shot cushion. “That second shot might be one of the best shots I’ve hit in my career so far,” Kim said. He rolled in a 4-foot par putt on the 18th, watching as his closest challenger, Min Woo Lee, faced a must-hold from the fairway to force a playoff. Lee managed a closing par for a 67 to finish alone in second.
Matt Fitzpatrick, who shared the 54-hole lead with Robert MacIntyre when the fog-delayed third round was completed Sunday morning, posted a 69 and tied for third with MacIntyre (69), Keita Nakajima (67) and Johnny Keefer (67). The result was a notable finish for Keefer, the 2025 Korn Ferry Tour Player of the Year, who earned one of three spots to next week’s British Open at Royal Birkdale. The other two spots went to Michael Thorbjornsen and Victor Perez. Keefer had been the third alternate and Thorbjornsen the fourth, and now both have their British Open tee times secured.
Rory McIlroy briefly moved within one of the leaders when he opened with a 30 on the front nine, ultimately signing for a 64 to tie for seventh with Thorbjornsen. McIlroy had shared the lead at the 18- and 36-hole marks until a third-round 73 left him six shots adrift. “It’s nice to wrap this week with a good score, but I know I need to do a bit of work between now and next Thursday to feel really comfortable with my game,” McIlroy said. “But I don’t feel like it’s too far away. There are definitely some positive signs.”
Kim’s mastery and perseverance have a history. He burst onto the PGA Tour scene with a top-three finish in the Scottish Open as a 20-year-old on a sponsor exemption, and he won twice on tour that year. He captured another title in Las Vegas in 2023 and represented the United States in both the Olympics and the Presidents Cup in 2024. Yet the last couple of seasons have proven challenging, and Kim said he pushed through with hard work and focus, even when the spotlight wasn’t shining as brightly.
“I’ve had a tough couple of years,” Kim acknowledged. “I got to taste a lot of that humble pie, and I learned a lot about myself, and I’m still trying to grow—still trying to learn. I know I’ve got a long way to go. But this win, I want to dedicate to the people who were in my corner the whole time, who struggled with me. I’m grateful for their support and for the opportunity to show them I can keep improving.”