North Berwick (Scotland), July 13 (IANS) South Korea’s Tom Kim produced a sensational final-round charge to win the Genesis Scottish Open on Sunday, while the Indian-origin contingent endured a disappointing finish, with none able to challenge for the title.

Indo-Canadian Sudarshan Yellamaraju, who had emerged as one of the surprise packages during the opening two rounds, slipped to a tied-52nd finish after carding a seven-over 77 in the final round. Indian-American Sahith Theegala signed off with a one-under 71 to finish tied-66th, while reigning PGA Championship winner Aaron Rai’s title defence had ended on Friday after he missed the cut.

Yellamaraju appeared on course for the best result of his rookie PGA TOUR season after impressive opening rounds of 68 and 65 propelled him into the top 10 at the halfway mark. However, difficult weekend conditions proved costly as he struggled to maintain that momentum, eventually dropping down the leaderboard despite an encouraging start to the tournament.

Theegala, meanwhile, continued his gradual return to competitive rhythm following an injury layoff earlier this year. The Hero-backed golfer posted a steady closing round but couldn’t make enough birdies to make significant progress, settling for a share of 66th place.

For Rai, the week ended prematurely. The defending Scottish Open champion and reigning PGA Championship winner failed to build on rounds of 71 and 70, missing the weekend and bringing his title defence to an early conclusion.

At the top of the leaderboard, Kim delivered one of the standout performances of the week. Beginning the final round one stroke off the lead, the 24-year-old fired a flawless, bogey-free eight-under 64 to finish at 17-under-par, securing a two-shot victory over Australia’s Min Woo Lee.

Kim set the tone with an opening-hole birdie before taking firm control with a superb tee shot at the par-three 16th. From 203 yards, he landed his approach within six feet and converted the birdie putt to establish a decisive advantage.

“That second shot might be one of the best shots I’ve hit in my career so far,” Kim said after sealing the victory.

The victory ended a 1,001-day wait since Kim’s previous PGA TOUR triumph at the 2023 Shriners Children’s Open. It also made him the first South Korean to win the Genesis Scottish Open and earned him a fourth PGA TOUR title, drawing level with Si Woo Kim and leaving only K.J. Choi ahead of him among South Korean winners on the circuit.

Lee closed with a five-under 67 to finish runner-up, while defending champion Robert MacIntyre shared third place alongside England’s Matt Fitzpatrick, Japan’s Keita Nakajima and American Johnny Keefer.

Keefer’s tied-third finish secured one of three available spots in next week’s Open Championship at Royal Birkdale through the Open Qualifying Series. The remaining qualifying berths went to Michael Thorbjornsen and France’s Victor Perez, while Rory McIlroy’s closing 64 lifted the home favourite into a share of seventh place.

–IANS

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