The CJ Cup Byron Nelson 2024: 16-year-old Kris Kim makes the cut in Texas

CJ Cup Byron Nelson 2024 Preview

Teenage star Kris Kim became the youngest player to make the cut on the PGA Tour since 2015 at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson as golf fans get a glimpse of the future.

Sam Snead, Jack Nicklaus, Tom Watson, Ben Crenshaw, Fred Couples, Phil Mickelson, Tiger Woods. The roll call of previous champions at the Byron Nelson reads like a list of golfing royalty.

It goes on too. Vijay Singh, Sergio Garcia, Adam Scott, and last year Jason Day, who etched his name into the trophy for the second time, ending a five-year title drought in the process. The baggy-trousered Australian who grabbed the headlines in Augusta returns to defend in a field not short of firepower with Min Woo Lee, Adam Scott, and Tom Kim also teeing it up.

Ironically though, the central attraction has been young buck Kris Kim, making his rodeo debut before flying back to the UK to sit his GCSE exams. Nothing like a 16-year-old competing on the PGA Tour to put your golfing aspirations back in their box! He showed few signs of nerves either with opening rouns of 68 and 67 to make it comfortably through to the weekend.

“I’m happy, I can’t wait to get started again tomorrow, said Kim. “I’ve enjoyed it so much the last couple of days and being here two more days makes it so much sweeter.”

Kim had a 2023 to remember, notching up victories in the Boys’ Amateur Championship, European Boys’ Individual Championship, and the McGregor Trophy. The highlight, however, was a stunning undefeated performance on his debut in the Junior Ryder Cup that included a 5&4 routing of American rising star Miles Russell, who himself finished T20 at the recent Korn Ferry Tour’s Suncoast Classic in Florida.

The English prodigy accepted an invitation from this year’s sponsor, the CJ Group, who unveiled Kim in May as the first amateur player to join their world-class stable of professional golfers that includes Sungjae Im, Si Woo Kim, Byeong Hun An, and KH Lee.

The CJ Group has been a long-standing supporter of the PGA Tour, previously hosting high-quality fields in South Korea and the USA between 2017 and 2022 with Rory McIlroy winning back-to-back in the last two editions.

Elsewhere in men’s professional golf, LIV Golf arrives in Singapore for the seventh event of the season with Crushers GC leading the team standings, and Joaquin Niemann holding a 32-point lead over Jon Rahm in the individual race.

Where is The CJ Cup Byron Nelson played?

TPC Craig Ranch in McKinney, Texas hosts the Byron Nelson. The par 72, 7,468-yard track is one of the easier tests on the PGA Tour with minimal rough and a stroke average of 69.22. Expect to see some low scoring if conditions allow.

The par-3 17th dubbed ‘Ranch17’ will see nearly 6,000 fans encircle the hole in a stadium structure akin to the famously raucous ‘Coliseum’ hole at the WM Phoenix Open and ramp up the energy as players look to end their rounds on a high.

The stadium hole at TPC Craig Ranch pays tribute to the legacy of Byron Nelson who on 11 consecutive tournaments in 1945, had the lifelong dream of making enough money through professional golf to purchase his own ranch.

Who is in the field at The CJ Cup Byron Nelson?

Jordan Spieth, Tom Kim, and defending champion Jason Day make up the only players in the field ranked inside the top 30 of the OGWRs after Will Zalatoris withdrew after a flare-up in his back.

The full field competing at TPC Craig Ranch can be found here.

Who will win The CJ Cup Byron Nelson?

Overseas players have traditionally do well here, Aussies and Koreans in particular. Three recent winners in Adam Scott, Steven Bowditch, and Jason Day hail from Down Under, and the tournament saw three consecutive winners from Korea with Kang Sung-hoon winning in 2019 before Lee Kyoung-hoon went back-to-back in 2021 and 2022.

Selected odds (before the start of round 2):

Alex Noren 9/1

Jake Knapp 14/1

Jason Day 14/1

Byeong-Hun An 16/1

Min Woo Lee 16/1

Matt Wallace 18/1

Stephen Jaeger 18/1

Keith Mitchell 25/1

Jordan Spieth 33/1

How much will The CJ Cup Byron Nelson receive?

The winner will receive a $1.71 million cut of the $9.5 million prize fund and 500 FedExCup points.

Read up on how the PGA Tour purses have evolved in recent years and which players feature in the all-time top earners on the PGA Tour.

How to watch The CJ Cup Byron Nelson?

US viewers can catch all the action on the Golf Channel.

All times EDT

Friday, May 03: The Golf Channel, 15.30

Saturday, May 04: The Golf Channel, 12.00

Sunday, May 05: The Golf Channel, 12.00

UK viewers can catch all the action on Sky Sports Golf.

All times GMT

Friday, May 03: Sky Sports, 12.45

Saturday, May 04: Sky Sports, 13.00

Sunday, May 05: Sky Sports, 13.00

The CJ Cup Byron Nelson: Tee Times

Round 2:

Tee times and groupings for rounds 3 & 4 can be found here once available.

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About the author

Ross Tugwood

Senior Digital Writer

Ross Tugwood is a golf equipment writer for todays-golfer.com, specializing in data, analytics, science, and innovation.

Ross is passionate about optimizing sports performance and has a decade of experience working with professional athletes and coaches for British Athletics, the UK Sports Institute, and Team GB.

He has post-graduate degrees in Performance Analysis and Sports Journalism, enabling him to critically analyze and review the latest golf equipment and technology to help you make better-informed buying decisions.