Rory McIlroy has issued his verdict on Tom Kim after getting to play with the 21-year-old for the final two rounds at the RBC Canadian Open over the weekend.
Both Rory McIlroy and Tom Kim came up just short at Hamilton Golf and Country Club, with both men just leaving too much work to do ahead of their final rounds.
However, they both gave great accounts of themselves; certainly threatening to challenge Robert MacIntyre at various points on Sunday.
Remarkably, McIlroy and Kim both shot 65s on Saturday, and then went one shot better on the final day of the event in Ontario.
Rory McIlroy praises Tom Kim after Canadian Open final round
And it appeared that they had a lot of fun playing together, with the South Korean one of the most exciting prospects on the PGA Tour right now. Many will have fallen in love with Kim’s game when he stole the show for the International team at the 2022 Presidents Cup.
And speaking to CBS Sports (broadcast on Sky Sports; 2/6; 22:48), McIlroy explained how much he had enjoyed playing alongside Kim as it was put to him that he is the little brother to many on the tour.
“Yeah, he is, he definitely makes me feel old,” he said. “I think that win that he had at the Wyndham a couple of years ago, I remember the first time I got to play with him at the Congaree, and I was really excited, I hadn’t really heard much about him, but it’s been a pleasure to see him progress in his career, mature, get better each and every year.
“Being on tour so long, it’s nice to somewhat take guys under your wing and try to show them the ropes.”
South Korean’s form is definitely heading in right direction
Kim will certainly hope that his performance at the Canadian Open proves to be a turning point in his season, with the youngster going into the week still awaiting his first top-10 of the year.
He has been there or thereabouts in almost every event since The Masters, so he will take a lot of confidence from the way that he is improving.
And when you have players such as McIlroy raving about getting the chance to play with you, that is only going to do wonders for your belief.
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