Tom Kim withdraws from The Players Championship due to illness

Tom Kim withdrew from The Players Championship eight holes into his opening round at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. on Thursday.

The PGA Tour said Kim’s withdrawal was due to an unspecified illness. It came as Kim was 5-over par following a triple-bogey on the par-3 17th hole. He also had carded a pair of bogeys along with five pars after starting on the 10th hole.

The three-time winner on tour is No. 18 in the Official World Golf Ranking. The popular 21-year-old from South Korea most recently won at the Shriners Children’s Open in October to reach a career-best 11th in the world.

Kim had made six of seven cuts in 2024 entering this week. His best result of the year was a T17 at the Waste Management Phoenix Open last month, and he’s coming off a T52 at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

Read more: HSBC Women’s World Golf Championship: Live streaming, where to watch and more

What is The Players Championship?

The Players Championship is an annual golf tournament on the PGA Tour. Originally known as the Tournament Players Championship, it began in 1974. The Players Championship at one point offered the highest purse of any tournament in golf. The field usually includes the top 50 players in the world rankings. However, unlike the major championships, it is owned by the PGA Tour and is not an official event on other tours.

Despite not being a major, it has been promoted as such by the tour, dubbed the fifth major, and is often regarded as the next most prestigious tournament in golf. This is because of the characteristics it shares with the majors, such as the high-class field and its large purse. It also has a renowned host course in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida better known as the TPC at Sawgrass Stadium Course.

Read more: Netflix Reveals ‘Rising Impact’: Nakaba Suzuki’s Golf Manga Turned Anime Sensation

The Players Championship- schedule

• Round 1: Thursday, March 14
• Round 2: Friday, March 15
• Round 3: Saturday, March 16
• Round 4: Sunday, March 17

Following the semi-finished opening round of the tournament, Wyndham Clark, Rory McIlroy, and Xander Schauffele topped the leaderboard with a score of under 7. The second round of the game will begin at 7:40 a.m. ET on Friday, March 15.

Read more: LIV Golf Stars urge for a PGA Tour returns amidst controversy with rival circuit

Get the latest from Sportslumo.com by following us on Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.