Whiz kid Kim wins the Panasonic Open India

Gurgaon, India, November 17: Korea’s Joohyung Kim became the second youngest Asian Tour winner when he fired a seven-under-par 65 to clinch the Panasonic Open India title by one shot on Sunday.

Having earned his Asian Tour card for the remainder of the 2019 season after claiming three wins on the Asian Development Tour (ADT) this year, the 17-year-old showed he is primed for the big leagues.

The Korean was making what was only his third start on the Asian Tour this year. But he produced another grandstand performance that belies his age with rounds of 70, 68 and 65 for a winning total of 13-under-par 203.

India’s Shiv Kapur was denied another victory on home soil as a costly double-bogey seven on his closing hole meant he would end the tournament in a share of second place with compatriot Chikkarangappa S. at the US$400,000 event which was contested over 54 holes at the Classic Golf and Country Club.

Australia’s Terry Pilkadaris, who held a share of the overnight lead, signed for a 71 to finish in outright fourth place while Indonesia’s Rory Hie was tied for fifth with Chinese Taipei’s Hung Chie-yao and India’s Vikrant Chopra.

Hie created history by becoming the first Indonesian to win on the Asian Tour just six weeks ago at the Classic Golf and Country Club.

Ends.

Did you know?

• Joohyung Kim is the second youngest player to win on the Asian Tour at 17 years and 149 days Thailand’s Chinnarat Phadungsil holds the record as the youngest winner at 17 years, five days when he won the Double A International Open in 2005.
• Kim recently earned a battlefield promotion from the Asian Development Tour (ADT) to the Asian Tour by winning three ADT events in the same season: the PGM ADT Championship @ Tiara Melaka, the Ciputra Golfpreneur Tournament presented by Panasonic and the Raya Pakistan Open.
• In addition to the three ADT wins, Kim posted a third-place finish at the Bank BRI Indonesia Open and a tied-sixth at last week’s Thailand Open.
• Kim has also recorded eight other top-10’s on the ADT and All Thailand Golf Tour (ATGT) combined in 2019.
• Kim has been living in Bangkok, Thailand with his family for two years. He turned professional in May 2018.
• Before moving to Bangkok, Kim was based in the Philippines for about six years. He won the 2018 Philippine Amateur Open Championship and the 2018 W Express RVF Cup Amateur Championship before recording his first professional title on the Philippine Golf Tour in July 2018.
• Kim speaks a total of three languages. He’s fluent in Tagalog, English and Korean.
• Chikkarangappa S., better known on Tour as “Chikka” tied-second finish at the Panasonic Open India is his best result on the Asian Tour this season.
• He has also won two titles on the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI), the Golconda Masters Championship and the Delhi-NCR Open Golf Championship.
• Chikka has previously won two titles on the ADT- the Take Solutions India Masters in 2014 and 2015.
• Shiv Kapur was chasing his second Panasonic Open India title since he first won the tournament in 2017.
• Kapur narrowly missed out on his fifth Asian Tour title in a play-off defeat in Thailand last week