Tom Kim proved Thursday night that even pro golf stars have flashes of weekend warrior in them ... 'cause in a wild attempt to rescue a brand new ball from a hazard area, he got absolutely lathered in mud.
The hilarious scene all went down during Kim's first round at the PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club in New York ... when on the sixth hole, the 20-year-old blasted his tee shot way off line.
Turns out, the ball was struck so badly ... it went over a creek and settled in a patch of high weeds.
"I miss days when I played on a Tour without cameras." @KiraDixon asking Tom Kim about THAT viral moment 🤣 pic.twitter.com/0ETpW7tpjc
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) May 19, 2023
Kim then had two options -- take a penalty stroke and drop the ball near the hazard ... or, strip off his shoes and socks and go in after it.
Turns out, Kim chose the latter ... and it ended up being a comically poor decision.
Check out the footage of Kim trying to find his Pro V1x ... the dude waded through waist-high mud for several moments, before he had to turn back without the ball and crawl to safety.
Video shows Kim left the hazard covered in mud ... and after the round -- while he was a good sport about it -- he was clearly embarrassed.
"You know," he said with a sheepish smile, "I miss the days when I played on a tour without cameras."
Kim was able to wash himself off in a nearby creek following the whole ordeal ... and despite having to take a penalty stroke and throw away his mud-stained shirt -- he ended up bogeying the hole. He later finished his round at +3.