Si Woo Kim made British Open history with his 238-yard hole-in-one on the par-3 17th at Royal Troon Golf Club on Saturday.
The South Korea native’s ace was the longest hole-in-one ever at the Open Championship, surpassing a 212-yard ace from Frank Lickliter II at Royal Lytham & St Annes in 2001.
“I’ve had about six holes-in-one before, but this is the most memorable,” Kim told reporters after his round.
Kim shot an even 71 on Saturday, bringing his score for the tournament to 5-over, which is tied for 40th in the field heading into Sunday.
He trails third-round leader Billy Horschel, who leads at 4-under, by nine strokes.
Horschel is trailed closely by six golfers, including PGA Championship winner Xander Schauffele, at 3-under for the tournament. Scottie Scheffler, the favorite heading into the weekend, is alone in eighth at 2-under.
But Kim’s hole-in-one was one of the top moments of the day.
“My caddie told me ‘You’d better hit hard with a three-iron’ so I did and as soon as I made good contact I see the ball over the fringe [and thought] ‘That must be maybe inside 20 feet,’” he said.
“Then people are yelling at me as I didn’t realize the ball went in. It was amazing. I had plenty of holes-in-one in my life, maybe over 10 times, but I think this is the most memorable hole-in-one because it’s a major and The Open and I was having a hard time on the front nine.
“I was feeling terrible about my shots the last couple of days. I made double Thursday and I made three-putt again yesterday. Finally, I got the hole-in-one, so I think I like it now.”