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Mark Schlabach, ESPN Senior Writer
Golfer Tom Kim apologized Monday for damaging a locker door following his playoff loss to Byeong Hun An in the DP World Tour’s Genesis Championship in his native South Korea.
In a statement posted to his Instagram account, Kim said that he didn’t intend to damage the door Sunday and that he offered to pay for its repair. Kim said he apologized to the DP World Tour and the Korean PGA Tour, which co-sanctioned the tournament held at the Jack Nicklaus Golf Club Korea in Incheon.
“After the loss I was frustrated, yes, absolutely,” Kim said in the statement. “[B]ut I can assure you with absolute truth that I had no intent of damaging any part of the locker, not a single bit.”
An, who also hails from South Korea, made an 8-foot birdie putt on the 72nd hole to tie Kim, who had an 8-footer lip out that would have won him the tournament.
In the playoff, Kim hit his third shot into a grandstand on the par-5 18th and made bogey. An made another birdie to pick up his second DP World Tour victory.
“I addressed it with the [DP World Tour] and the KPGA right after the incident saying that the door came off,” Kim said. “We had to fully pull it out due to safety reasons. I also let them know that I was willing to pay all expenses for the damage.”
Kim said the matter was “closed” after he spoke with the tours and offered to pay to repair the door. He didn’t believe he would be sanctioned by either circuit.
“I am grateful to everyone that’s reached out with messages of support, but to them and everyone else that I may have let down, I apologize with all my heart,” Kim wrote.
It’s the second time in less than a month that Kim has apologized for his actions at a tournament. At last month’s Presidents Cup in Montreal, he apologized to U.S. team captain Jim Furyk and two-time major winner Xander Schauffele for telling reporters that unidentified members of the U.S. team were cursing at him and partner Si Woo Kim during a foursomes match.
Kim sought out Furyk and Schauffele after his Sunday singles match. The Americans defeated the International team 18½-11½.
“Yeah, it was just about my comments,” Kim said at the time. “I just told him like, ‘Hey, I didn’t mean it to go in such a negative way.’ If it did, I just said I’m sorry. It was just I felt like what I heard yesterday, some comments that I’ve heard was at that time, just coming off the green, it came to me so personally and just I felt like it was right to share.”