The 16-year-old English amateur Kris Kim made the cut at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson on a sponsor’s exemption, making history as the youngest player to do so in 11 PGA Tour events.
Kim shot a 4-under 67 to cap off his second round on Friday with a birdie. Among the 66 players who made the cut, he was at 7-under 135 for the round. At 14-under 128 he was leading Jake Knapp.
ESPN Stats & Information data indicates that Guan Tianlang made the cut at both the 2013 Masters and the Zurich Classic of New Orleans when he was 14 years old.
Kim is the fifth-youngest golfer to ever make a cut on the PGA Tour at 16 years, 7 months old, according to the Tour. In addition, his accomplishment occurs just two weeks after 15-year-old Miles Russell became the youngest person to be selected in the Korn Ferry Tour’s 35-year history.
Kim is making his PGA Tour debut. He is the son of South Korean native and former LPGA Tour player Ji-Hyun Suh. The South Korean corporation CJ Group, the inaugural title sponsor of the Nelson, is supporting him as an amateur for the first time.
I’m content, Kim declared. “I’m eager to get back to work tomorrow.
“I’ve enjoyed it so much the last couple days, and being here two more days makes it so much sweeter.”
“I always felt like this is where I should be and knew this was what I wanted to do, even when I was doing any of the stuff. Simply wasn’t there yet “Slightly over two years after working security at a late-night restaurant in his hometown, Knapp spoke. “Just kept working away and sticking at it.”
At the 531-yard ninth hole, Merritt hit his approach to 16 feet and made the putt to finish his round with a season-low score. Previously, he had made birdies on four of the six holes.
Wallace finished on the same par-5 later that day, and he did so by chunking a shot from there to beneath a bridge after driving into a native area.
Jordan Spieth, the top-ranked player in the tournament at No. 20, and a hometown favorite, shot a 70 to finish at 4-under 138 and miss the cut by two strokes. On the sixteenth hole, his misplaced shot bounced back into the fairway off the elbow of a male fan. Even so, he bogeyed the hole before parring the final two.
Jason Day, the defending champion, finished his round at 6-under 136, almost missing the cut with a 35-foot par putt for a 70.
On his 12th hole on Friday, the dogleg No. 3, Knapp’s drive slid into the left rough, making it his only bogey during the first two rounds. However, he managed to make birdies on four of his final six holes, beginning with a 32-foot putt on the par-3, 192-yard fourth hole.
“Obviously, a putt you’re not trying to make,” he replied. “Hit it a little bit harder than I would’ve liked and luckily it was on a good line and went in.”
Before accepting the part-time position in the fall of 2021 at the location in Costa Mesa, California, Knapp, who turns 30 on May 31, lost his card on the developing Korn Ferry Tour. For about nine months, he worked Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights—often until two or three in the morning. In between work hours, the former UCLA player would train out and go to the gym.
In August of 2022, he won his third race on the PGA Tour Canada. The previous year, he finished 13th on the Korn Ferry Tour to earn a spot on the PGA Tour. After making five starts this season, he won the Mexico Open in his ninth career start overall, which included two as an amateur in 2015.
In addition, he states in his PGA Tour biography that he enjoys working out, can solve a Rubik’s Cube, and, if he weren’t a golfer, would like to work in the fitness sector.
Yes, there are a few noteworthy ones about me, Knapp replied. I really try, but I’m more of a golf guy. Simply practice and play a lot of golf. I’ve spent the last four or five years concentrating on that.”
Knapp made 16 of 18 greens in the opening two rounds at TPC Craig Ranch, north of Dallas. Additionally, he made the same number of putts (28 on both days), but his total distance on the greens increased from 75 feet on Thursday to 139 feet on Friday.
“I’m keeping in the right places and hitting it pretty good for the most part. Made it really simple for me.” said Knapp. “I felt like I was putting well early in the year, and over the last month or so, the stroke seemed the same and the ball wasn’t going in the hole. Glad to see a few more entering.”
Before making a three-putt bogey at No. 12, Merritt started his round with two straight birdies. However, he immediately made up for that stroke with a 52-foot chip-in at No. 13. Out of the last six events he had played in, this was only his second cut, and in that one he placed 67th.
For Merritt, who is competing in his 331st PGA Tour event and last won in 2018, hitting the ball solid and making lots of putts is terrific. “You’re not by chance present. To get there, you really did play well. No, I haven’t done it. Last autumn, I inadvertently backdoored a few top-10s.”
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