Michael Kim shoots historic 59 to seize 3M Open lead

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The American made 12 birdies without a bogey during a remarkable second round at TPC Twin Cities in Blaine, Minnesota.

Kim started the day well, reeling off five birdies in a row from the third hole, before finishing in spectacular fashion with four consecutive birdies.

His final stroke was a 24-foot birdie putt at the 18th, which secured a career-best round, a new course record and only the 16th score of 59 or lower in PGA Tour history.

The 33-year-old climbed to 14 under par for the tournament after opening with a two-under 69 on Thursday.

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Kim’s 59 is joint-second on the list of the lowest 18-hole scores in PGA Tour history.

Jim Furyk remains the only player to have gone lower, shooting a 58 at the 2016 Travelers Championship.

The former John Deere Classic champion said his putting had been the difference, with Kim sinking eight putts from at least 10 feet during his round.

“I putted awesome,” he said.

“I feel that I got just about everything I could out of that round.

“When you hit a putt and it does exactly what you envisioned before you hit it, it’s an awesome feeling. Felt like that all day out there.”

Kim said he would need to avoid comparing his next round with Friday’s historic score as he targets a second PGA Tour title.

“It will be important for me to not compare myself tomorrow to today’s round,” he said.

“There’s a long way to go - and that guy named Scottie Scheffler is probably going to throw up a good score today anyway. Nowhere near done.”