Before Ryan Fox’s furious finish on Sunday, it looked like Si Woo Kim was the longshot meant to make British Open history.
The 31-year-old had the solo lead as he headed to the back nine at Royal Birkdale in position to become the first Asian-born player to claim the claret jug. But that all changed as he made four bogeys over the final eight holes to drop into a tie for sixth place.
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The good news for Kim? It marked his best-ever finish in 38 career major starts, topping a T-8 at last year’s PGA Championship. The bad news? Well, obviously, he felt like he let this tournament get away. And the four-time PGA Tour winner gave a brutally honest self-assessment after on Instagram, even using the dreaded “C-word.” Have a look:
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“Thank you @TheOpen another choke final round and & another top6,” Kim captioned.
Sports psychologists probably wouldn’t recommend talking about choking, but fans in the replies appreciated Si Woo’s honesty. So what was he referring to if he’s never seriously contended on Sunday at a major before? (Not counting his win at the 2017 Players Championship, of course.)
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The fact that Kim now has 10 top-10 finishes this year—tying him with Scottie Scheffler for the most on the PGA Tour—without a win. And six of those are top-six finishes, including runner-ups at Pebble Beach and the Byron Nelson. So he’s played a lot of great golf in 2026 with zero trophies to show for it.
Anyway, hang in there, Si Woo, and don’t beat yourself up too much. The law of averages suggests your time to get back in the winner’s circle is coming.
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