The Agony of Defeat Personified: Tom Kim Cried Real Tears After a Double Bogey on the 18th Means He's Headed to Mandatory Military Service

Call me a sentimental fool. Call me a jingoistic nationalist for getting caught up in the patriotism of this moment. But by golly, this is what the Olympics are supposed to be all about. Scottie Scheffler, who if he retired today would still have had one of the great careers ever in his sport, added one thing to his list of accomplishments he will never forget. Standing atop the podium at the Paris Games, hearing "The Star Spangled Banner" played in honor of himself, his nation, and his fellow countrymen, and openly, unashamedly weeping at the beauty of it all. 

As Gandalf puts it at the end of Lord of the Rings, when the Hobbits have fulfilled their mission and saved Middle Earth but must say goodbye to one of their own, "I will not say 'Do not weep.' For not all tears are an evil."

And that is very true. But it still means most tears are an evil. Like the ones you shed when losing out on a medal means you now have to go to mandatory military service, for instance. Just as Tom Kim:

Golf Digest - For those not paying attention, one of the biggest subplots this week at Le Golf National was the story of South Korea's Tom Kim, who could have avoided mandatory military service in his home country by medaling at the Olympics. ...

In South Korea, able-bodied men are obligated to serve 21 months of military service before they turn 35. To be exempt, you must win a medal at the Olympic Games or win a gold medal at the Asian Games. ...

               

At 22, Kim will have many more opportunities at playing his way out of mandatory military service, but that doesn't mean it's a given. ...

               

An never had much of a chance on Sunday, but Kim certainly did. Beginning the day at 10 under, it would have taken something special to reach the podium, and it appeared Kim was on his way to something special early, going four under over his first eight holes. A back-nine 36, which included a double at the last, though, saw Kim finish in solo eighth, just four shots away from bronze.

First of all, I can totally understand a sovereign nation like South Korea having mandatory military obligations. When you share a border with a deranged, nuclear-tipped Bond villain, you do what you must to protect your land, your people and your way of life. What I don't get is this Olympic Games/Asian Games loophole. I mean, it strikes me that there are plenty of sports in the Games that would be perfectly applicable to becoming a good soldier. Track. Field. Decathalon. Triathalon. Gymnastics. Swimming. Shooting. Even, in a pinch, Archery and Javelin. Wouldn't you want the very best in these events to translate those skills into helping keep the Commie horde to your north at bay? After all, isn't the whole point of boot camp to make your recruits stronger, faster and tougher? These guys are already there. And sending them back to civilian life seems like a hell of a waste. 

And where do they draw the line? Do you get an exemption if you won an Oscar for Parasite?  A Primetime Emmy for Squid Game? If you're in a K-Pop band and win a Golden Globe. If you're a ventriloquist that the Seoul version of Heidi Klum sends the finals of South Korea's Got Talent, do you get a free pass for defending your country that some farmer or truck driver doesn't? I guess I'm just confused on the concept.

But I'm not here to discuss other nation's military policies as much as I am Tom Kim. And by extension, all of us who can relate. There's not a golfer among us who hasn't walked off the green after a tough final hole and wasn't filled with regret, wondering how it all could've gone so horribly wrong. From losing club championship to falling short of your personal best. Whether it's missing out on winning a Florida Scramble-style fundraiser or money in your Thursday Night league, we've all had it go pear-shaped on us at the 18th at some point. 

Now instead of not getting your name on a plaque in the clubhouse or winning a new driver, that double bogey meant this is your future:

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So let's all try to go easy on Tom Kim. A couple of bad shots might be the difference between a life of comfort, riches, celebrity, and boning golf groupies, and getting woken up before dawn to do 10-mile runs with full field packs in the rain. If you've ever wept with frustration in the car because your day went tits up on the last hole - and I bet you have - you can't do anything but feel sympathy this poor bastard.