Michael Kim etched his name into the PGA Tour record books Friday at the 3M Open at TPC Twin Cities with a 12-under 59 for the 16th round of sub-60 in PGA Tour history.
Kim Byung-hyun started the round with a par 2, but in the middle of the front nine he made five consecutive birdies from the 3rd to the 7th, catching fire, adding another on the 9th, and making the turn at the 29th. Kim only made two birdies in the first five holes on the backside, and it seemed like he was out of the 59th hole, but in the middle, Kim made four consecutive birdies from the 15th to the 18th, achieving a magic number in the golf world.
Despite closing out the round with a par 5, Kim needed a 24-foot putt at the end for the final birdie. He filled it in at a good pace and gave a big fist pump knowing exactly what he had just accomplished.
Kim did some damage with his iron play in the second round, picking up over 3.7 strokes on the field on his approach, and then had an incredible day on the greens — as evidenced by his last putt — sinking a putt over 145 feet and extending his putter nearly 6.6 strokes over the field.
Sub-60 Rounds in PGA Tour History
2016 | Jim Furyk | 58 | final | travelers championship |
2026 | michael kim | 59 | second | 3M open |
2025 | jake knapp | 59 | 1st place | Cognizant Classic |
2024 | hayden springer | 59 | 1st place | john deere classic |
2024 | Cameron Young | 59 | 3rd place | travelers championship |
2020 | Scotty Scheffler | 59 | second | northern trust |
2019 | Kevin Chappell | 59 | second | Military Tribute at the Greenbrier |
2018 | brandt snedeker | 59 | 1st place | wyndham championship |
2017 | adam hadwin | 59 | 3rd place | career builder challenge |
2017 | Justin Thomas | 59 | 1st place | sony open |
2013 | Jim Furyk | 59 | second | bmw championship |
2010 | stuart appleby | 59 | final | greenbrier classic |
2010 | paul goidos | 59 | 1st place | john deere classic |
1991 | chip beck | 59 | 3rd place | Las Vegas Invitational |
1991 | david duvall | 59 | final | Bob Hope Invitational |
1977 | Al Geiberger | 59 | second | memphis classic |
Kim is the first player to hit a 59 this season, and the first to accomplish the feat since Jake Knapp’s 59 at the Cognizant Classic a year ago. There are several courses where he has scored 59 points multiple times, including The Greenbrier, TPC Quad Cities, and TPC River Highlands, but Kim is the first to break 60 points at TPC Twin Cities.
The feat is big from a historical perspective, but it’s also huge for Kim, who came into this tournament in desperate need of a big week to get out of the playoff bubble after missing the cut in her previous three starts on the PGA Tour. Kim started the week 65th in the FedEx Cup standings, but a win would move him up to 35th, and he shot a 59 on Friday to be 14 under and hold a three-stroke lead heading into the weekend in Minnesota.
weekend candidates
T2. Ben Corles, Emiliano Grillo, Chandler Phillips (-11)
T5. Jackson Koibun, Troy Merritt (-10)
T7.Zach Blair, Billy Horschel, Brian Herman (-9)
T10. Denny McCarthy, Michael Brennan, Jesper Svensson (-8)
T13. Scotty Scheffler, Hideki Matsuyama, Gary Woodland, and 8 others (-7)
Coles started the day in the lead Thursday with a 62, but was in the midst of post-round pressure when Kim missed the putt on the 18th, causing a roar from the crowd. Coles joked that his 62 was “not that good” and has work to do to get Kim out over the weekend. Fresh off his first professional top-10 finish at the ISCO Championship, Koibun will be looking to return to the lead heading into the weekend and aim for the best finish of his career. That’s because the highly touted former Auburn star is starting to settle into life as a pro.
The biggest topic heading into the 3M Open is Scottie Scheffler aiming for his second win of the season. With a 6-under 65 on Thursday, he appeared well-positioned to take control of a tournament lacking in star power. But Scheffler stalled on Friday’s back nine, dropping from 3 under par to a 1-under 70 by the time he signed his card, leaving him outside the top 10 and seven strokes off Kim’s pace. Scheffler certainly has the ability to perform like that on the weekend, but his season has been plagued by strange off-rounds that have kept him out of the winner’s circle since January, and Friday’s performance could continue that trend.
Celebrities who missed the cut
- Mac Meisner (-2)
- Stefan Jaeger (-2)
- Im Sung Jae (-1)
- Stephen Fish (-1)
- Aldrich Potgieter (E)
- Johnny Keefer (E)
- Tony Fiau (+1)
- Jackson Suber (+1)
- Sudarshan Yelamaraju (+1)
- Andrew Putnam (+1)
- Tom Hoge (+2)
- Max Homa (+4)
- Patrick Rogers (+4)
- Pierceson Coody (+6)
3M is the start of the final push to the playoffs, and it’s been a disappointing week for all the players looking to be on the field in Memphis. Everyone on this list entered this week hoping to get closer to the bubble, but instead will have to take an early flight home and put in even more work in the final two weeks of the regular season. Homa will likely fall outside the top 50 by missing out, dropping from 49th to a projected 51st place, although he remains safely within the top 70. Kiefer’s absence is a tough pill to swallow as the reigning Korn Ferry Tour champion drops from a projected 71st to 74th place, giving him more room to recover over the next two weeks. Meisner was on the bubble in 70th place, but has dropped to 71st and will be under even more stress going forward.
