Kim Joo-hyung, returning to a regular PGA Tour event after about two months, secured his fifth top-10 finish of the season.

Competing in the final round of the PGA Tour Mexico Open at Vidanta World in Vallarta, Nayarit, Mexico (par 71) on the 2nd (KST), Kim shot 5-under 66 with six birdies and one bogey. He finished tied for 6th at 18-under overall, alongside four other players including Korean-American Doug Ghim (USA).

Having slipped to a tie for 26th amid setbacks that included a penalty for playing the wrong ball in the second rounds, Kim bounced back by cutting a total of 11 strokes over the third and fourth rounds to achieve a satisfying result.

On this day, Kim grabbed his first birdie on the 3rd hole (par 5) after his second shot landed in the bunker in front of the green, followed by a delicate recovery close to the pin.

He also added a birdie on the 6th hole through steady management.

Although he bogeyed the 7th hole (par 3) when his tee shot sailed over the back left of the green, he bounced back with a birdie on the 8th hole.

Having shaved two strokes off in the front nine, Kim cleanly added three more strokes without a bogey in the back nine.

He recorded a sequence of birdies on the 10th, 12th, and 14th holes, followed by a string of pars to wrap up his performance.

Kim competed in the Tour Championship in late August, played in the Presidents Cup team match held in the United States in September, and then headed straight to Nagoya, Japan, where he won a gold medal at the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.

After taking time to rest and recover his condition, Kim returned to the top 10 for the first time in about three months since tying for 5th at the Wyndham Championship in August.

The winner's prize of $1.08 million (approx. 1.43 billion won) went to Andrew Novak (USA), who finished at 25-under overall.

Novak secured his first career win alongside Ben Griffin (USA) at the Zurich Classic, a team event held in pairs, in 2025, and celebrated both his second career victory and his first individual win at this tournament.

Steven Fisk (USA) and Kristoffer Ventura (Norway) each shaved 8 strokes off on this day to finish at 20-under, tying for 2nd place.

Griffin, who claimed three wins last season, finished tied for 4th alongside Mackenzie Hughes (Canada) with a total of 19-under 265.

Meanwhile, the PGA Tour grants playing privileges for next season to players ranked 100th and below in the FedEx Cup standings after concluding the 8 fall series tournaments this season.

This tournament marks the 5th event of the fall series.

Kim secured his tour card through the 2028 season by winning the Genesis Scottish Open last July.

(Photo: Getty Images)