Michael Kim admits 'getting too cute' cost him shots in Round 1 of The Open Championship

PGA Tour star Michael Kim is chasing his second Tour title and first Major championship victory at the 2025 Open Championship. Following a poor performance in his first round, he acknowledged that poor decision-making cost him some shots and contributed to a bad start.

Kim has gained widespread popularity for often posting length recaps of PGA Tour tournaments on X. After he concluded his first round at Royal Portrush, he shared a thread on X dissecting his worst and best holes.

The one-time PGA Tour winner wrote that while he hit a “nice tee shot” on the opening hole, his shot on the 13th wasn’t as great. He also wrote that he may have chosen the wrong short iron to take the shot.

“13 might have been [the] worst swing of the day. Tried to get cute with an 8i trying to get too close and hit it short sided 🤦🏻‍♂️,” he wrote.

In his overall recap, Michael Kim said:

“I tried to get too cute a couple times and it cost me a couple shots. Especially in trouble, I need to do a better job really avoiding the bad areas at all cost.”

Michael Kim’s performance on Royal Portrush’s front nine outshone that of the back nine. He made an even par on his first five holes and shot a birdie on the par-3 sixth. His first bogey of the day came on the par-4 eighth, and he continued in that trend with four bogeys on the back nine. He then closed with a beautiful birdie on the par-4 18th hole.

In his recap, the Seoul-born golfer acknowledged that the back nine was “much tougher” because of the wind. He also said that despite it all, he still “feels good” about his game.

Michael Kim scored 3-over 74 in his first round and is in a tie for 97th position with Cameron Young, Ben Griffin, and 14 others. He is seven strokes behind Harris English, who scored 4-under 67 and has taken the lead with Matt Fitzpatrick and three other golfers. Just as Kim wrote, he’ll “need a good round tomorrow” to stand a chance at making it to the weekend.

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Michael Kim’s scorecard from the 2025 Open Championship, Round 1

Here’s a look at Michael Kim’s scorecard from his first round at the 2025 Open Championship:

Round 1

• Hole 1 (par 4) - 4
• Hole 2 (par 5) - 5
• Hole 3 (par 3) - 3
• Hole 4 (par 4) - 4
• Hole 5 (par 4) - 4
• Hole 6 (par 3) - 2
• Hole 7 (par 5) - 5
• Hole 8 (par 4) - 5
• Hole 9 (par 4) - 4
• Hole 10 (par 4) - 5
• Hole 11 (par 4) - 5
• Hole 12 (par 5) - 5
• Hole 13 (par 3) - 4
• Hole 14 (par 4) - 4
• Hole 15 (par 4) - 4
• Hole 16 (par 3) - 3
• Hole 17 (par 4) - 5
• Hole 18 (par 4) - 3

Edited by Samya Majumdar