Kim Joo-hyung[EPA=연합뉴스] |
Kim Joo-hyeong (20), who won the qualification for the 2022-2023 season on the PGA Tour, was selected as a candidate for the Rookie of the Year award for the 2021-2022 season.
The PGA Tour announced the list of nominees for the 2021-2022 season Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year on the 6th (Korean time).
In addition to Kim Joo-hyung, three people were nominated for the Rookie of the Year award: Cameron Young and Sahis Tigala (USA).
Kim Joo-hyung participated in 11 PGA Tour tournaments this year and won the Wyndham Championship in August, placing 3rd at the Scottish Open and 7th at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
He finished the season in 35th place in the FedEx Cup rankings, which are ranked by converting season performance into points.
The Rookie of the Year Award, also called the Arnold Palmer Award, is decided by votes from players who have participated in regular competitions more than 15 times in the 2021-2022 season.
Voting closes at 5pm EST on the 9th, and the winners will be announced later.
Kim Joo-hyung was nominated, but the strongest nominee for the award is also Young.
Young appeared in 25 competitions this season, winning five times, including the British Open, the Sanderson Palms Championship, the Genesis Invitational, the Wells Fargo Championship, and the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
Although he has not won a championship, he is ranked 19th in the FedEx Cup rankings, the highest among nominees for the Rookie of the Year award.
Tigalla ranked 28th in the FedEx Cup rankings, finishing runners-up in the Travelers Championship and 3rd in the Phoenix Open in 32 competitions.
Among the three nominees for the Rookie of the Year award, Kim Joo-hyung is the only one who has won the championship.
However, in recent votes for the Rookie of the Year, it is true that the FedEx Cup point ranking has been the criterion more than whether or not the winner has won.
Im Seong-jae (24), who received the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year award for the first time in the 2018-2019 season as an Asian player, competed with then-candidates Colin Morikawa, Matthew Wolf, and Cameron Champ (above the United States). there were wins
However, Seongjae Lim, who had the most FedEx Cup points, was honored with the award.
Three nominees for Player of the Year were FedEx Cup champion Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland), world No. 1 Scottie Schaeffler (USA), and this year’s The Open winner Cameron Smith (Australia).
As Smith moved to the Saudi-backed LIV series, it is expected to be at a disadvantage in the race for the vote.