Read more: Golf Olympic Paris 2024: Scottie Scheffler wins Gold Medal on Jon Rahm's bad day

Friends, it was truly an emotional scene in Paris last weekend as everyone's fave phenom Tom Kim came agonizingly close to scoring himself a sweet deal with Uncle Sam. As you probably heard, all able-bodied South Korean men are expected to put in two years of service before age 35, but golfers can bypass the whole shebang if they bag themselves an Olympic medal.

This much was weighing heavily on not just Tom but also his countryman Byeong Hun An, who's 32 and running low on time. Both guys were in the hunt going into Sunday at Le Golf National, but while An didn't really have the goods, Kim was rolling for a while there with four birdies in his first eight. Things took a sad turn down the back nine though, as he slipped to a back nine 36 with a double bogey to finish.

Our guy ended up solo eighth, a mere four strokes away from bronze. And that's when the waterworks started flowing something fierce in the TV tower! Cameras caught a fully sobbing Kim as he signed his card.

🚨😢🇰🇷 Tom Kim is emotional in the scoring trailer. A podium finish was needed to avoid the prospect of mandatory military service. pic.twitter.com/4I7X0WGMhP

— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF) August 4, 2024

When asked about the possibility of having to complete military service, Kim insisted that was not on his mind during the round. "Not at all. I wasn't really thinking about that at all," he said. "Just try and make a medal for my country and not myself."

He said it was "surprising" to get so emo but that he was just feeling all the effort he put in this year. Awww, poor Tom!

"I think these emotions are surprising but I think it's just all the hard work I've done this year to put myself in this position, those things are coming out," Tom said. "Just the things Scottie [Scheffler] said to me after the round really kind of came out and I'm just trying to hold it together."

Scottie with his arm around Tom Kim is so bittersweet.

Scottie in contention for gold, but one of his best friends Tom Kim needed a podium finish to not go to mandatory military service pic.twitter.com/bToEFQMCfn

— PGA/LIV Hot Takes (@PGALIVHotTakes) August 4, 2024

It's not all doom and tears for the kid though. At only 22, he's young enough that this won't be his last shot at Olympic glory or dodging the army. Still, no doubt it was gutting to come so close to an exemption, especially when he was looking so hot out there early. Keep your chin up Tom, I'm sure it's just a matter of time before your crazy talent and that gorgeous swing deliver you a big fat medal.