20-Year-Old Tom Kim Ties The Lowest Nine-Hole Score Ever At A U.S. Open With A TWENTY-NINE In The Third Round

Slow down and make us old heads feel a little better, Tom Kim!! I feel like I've hit middle age and accomplished nothing with my life watching this prodigy tee it up at the U.S. Open. 

Kim is already a two-time winner on the PGA Tour, and if the conditions keep drying out and the wind kicks up at The Los Angeles Country Club, maybe he has a shot at chasing down Rickie Fowler and the other leaders. Plenty of golf in front of this young man, but holy fuck, he is wasting no time at all making his mark on the sport.

World-class skill is a prerequisite to shoot a score this good, particularly at a U.S. Open where pars are at a premium. That's not really the case this year. Shut up. It's still impressive as hell. Anyway, you do need some good breaks and a little luck to score this well. After birdieing the first and third holes, Kim had a daunting long-range putt at the par-3 fourth...and proceeded to do this...

...And speaking of par 3s, how about this bird to cap off the electric front side??

UPDATE: Kim has birdied the par-4 10th to get to seven under for Saturday's third round and six under for the championship. Only four back of Rickie, who has still yet to tee off as of this writing.

You love to see it. Incredible, precocious players bursting onto the golfing scene to make the game more exciting. Since Tiger Woods is the needle for the most part, any young gun is a welcome addition to the circuit. Plenty of spice in the sport of late thanks to the LIV/PIF situation, but let's celebrate Tom Kim for the budding superstar that he is. Really intrigued to see what the leaderboard looks like at the end of moving day, and whether Rickie, Rory McIlroy and some of the other big names near the top can score well enough to create some separation.

Twitter @MattFitz_gerald/TikTok