PGA Tour Makes Non-Rookie Eligible For Rookie Of Year Chase

Most PGA Tour season-ending awards fail to resonate, except this year when we have a fun player of the year debate between Day and Johnson, and an even more fun rookie-of-the-year battle brewing between Emiliano Grillo and Smylie Kaufman. Unlike some years, both are deserving candidates playing well enough that one may finish off already solid years in grand style.

Except that, Si Woo Kim is now a rookie. And he might just win.

Grillo and Kaufman have been joined by someone who became the youngest golfer ever at 17 to earn a card (in 2012), but was apparently not considered a rookie then because he played in just seven events (with one WD that counted).

But with just two tournaments left, Kim was declared a rookie by the tour this week and there are the expected questions as to why this was just now discovered.

Alex Myers at GolfDigest.com explains how tour decided to classify Kim a rookie.