Coming into this 2025 PGA Tour season, Si Woo Kim had appeared in every single major championship but one since making his major debut at the 2016 PGA Championship.
And the only reason he missed the 2021 Open Championship is because he chose to withdraw, opting instead to use that time to prepare for the COVID-delayed Tokyo Olympics.
However, after eight years of being eligible for every major, the South Korean star recently saw that streak come to an end, as he failed to qualify for last week's Masters.
And on top of that, it might surprise some to know that Kim is currently not eligible for any of the three remaining majors on the 2025 calendar, which is a little wild, seeing as how he qualified for every PGA Tour Signature Event.
Without a win, which Kim hasn't had in more than two years, one way to get into all four majors is to get into the field at the Tour Championship, as all 30 participants in the season finale are guaranteed slots at the following year's Masters, PGA Championship, U.S. Open, and Open Championship.
And Kim came excruciatingly close, jumping 12 spots in the FedEx Cup standings with a T5 finish at the penultimate playoff event, the BMW Championship. But as that jump only moved him from 44th to 32nd, he obviously fell just short of where he needed to be.
With that finish, despite missing the Tour Championship, Kim moved to No. 49 in the Official World Golf Ranking. And had he been able to maintain that spot until the end of the 2024 calendar year, he would have received an invite to Augusta.
But again, he failed to do so, actually dropping 11 spots to end the year at No. 60 in the world. He also failed to get into the top 50 upon the conclusion of this year's Texas Children's Houston Open, where he missed the cut to fall to No. 67. Kim also missed the cut the following week at the Valero Texas Open, which he had to win to punch his ticket to Augusta.
All that said, Si Woo has clearly used his absence at The Masters as motivation not to miss another major, as he's playing brilliant golf at the RBC Heritage.
Si Woo Kim has put himself in position to win the RBC Heritage
After opening his week with a solid 3-under round of 68, the 2017 Players Championship winner vaulted up the leaderboard on Friday, firing a 7-under 64 to get into Saturday's final group alongside Justin Thomas. And with a strong 5-under 66 in Round 3, he'll take a one-stroke lead over Thomas and Andrew Novak into the final round.
A third-round (66) for Si Woo Kim sends him into Sunday leading the @RBC_Heritage 🙌 pic.twitter.com/vBWiGzy11Q
— Golf on CBS ⛳ (@GolfonCBS) April 19, 2025
Obviously, a win on Sunday would take care of Kim's major championship problem, as a victory gets him into the remaining three this year and next year's Masters.
But even if he doesn't hang on, finishing in the top two or three will still significantly help him.
One way to get into the PGA Championship is to be one of the 70 leaders on the PGA Championship points list, which is based on official money earned on the PGA Tour since last year's event. The cutoff will be at the end of the Charles Schwab Challenge, which concludes the Sunday before the start of the action at Quail Hollow.
Kim is currently ranked 52nd on that list at roughly $2.9 million. With the RBC being a Signature Event, the total purse is an elevated $20 million. So, even if he doesn't take the $3.6 million winner's check, second place would give him $2.16 million and third place would give him $1.36 million, either of which would vault him up the board and effectively guarantee him a slot at the PGA.
A top-three finish at a Signature Event would also give Kim a boost in the world rankings. Currently ranked 72nd, Kim needs to be in the top 60 on either May 19 (after the PGA Championship) or June 9 (after the RBC Canadian Open) to gain automatic entry to the U.S. Open at Oakmont.
And if he's in the top 50 in the OWGR at the end of the PGA, he gains automatic entry to The Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
He can always go through qualifying for the U.S. Open and the British, but he'd obviously prefer to avoid that.
Again, though, none of this matters if Kim wins the RBC Heritage. And given the poise he's shown through the first three rounds, his chances look pretty good.