Kim Si-woo continues to fight at the BMW Championship

Im Sung-jae (left) and Kim Si-woo watch from the sixth tee during the third round of the BMW Championship at Castle Pines Golf Club in Castle Rock, Colorado, on Saturday. [GETTY IMAGES]

Korean Kim Si-woo fought his way to a shared seventh place with a score of 1 under par 71 in the third round of the $20 million BMW Championship on Saturday, keeping his hopes of reaching the FedExCup playoff final, the Tour Championship next week, alive.

Kim, a four-time PGA Tour winner, traded five birdies for four bogeys at Castle Pines Golf Club in Colorado for a 6-under-par total, trailing 54-hole leader Keegan Bradley, who shot a 70 to lead at 12 under par. Bradley heads into the final round one stroke ahead of Adam Scott (74), while Swedish duo Ludvig Aberg (71) and Alex Noren (70) share third place at 10 under par.

Another Korean, Im Sung-jae, shot a 73 to share ninth place at 5 under par, while An Byeong-hun shot a 71 to share 18th place at 4 under par.

Kim knows he needs to improve his shot accuracy after missing six fairways, which contributed to his misses. He is currently projected to rise from 44th to 33rd in the FedExCup points list, with the top 30 heading into the Tour Championship at East Lake on Sunday.

“It was a tough day. The first nine holes started well with a couple of good birdies, but the second nine holes were a challenge. I missed a couple of fairways and here you get penalized if you're in the rough. I fought hard and was disappointed to make a bogey on the last hole,” said Kim.

He is ready to give it his all on Sunday as he also battles to play his way into the international team whose top six automatic selections will be confirmed for the Presidents Cup next month after the BMW Championship. Kim is currently ranked 14th on the team list and will hope that a strong result will also ensure he remains in captain Mike Weir's plans for the six automatic selections named after the Tour Championship.

“I'm still in a good position and can give it my all tomorrow to continue my season and qualify for the Tour Championship. I just need to play the back nine better,” said Kim.

Im, who is currently ranked 10th on the FexExCup points list, is close to qualifying for his sixth consecutive TOUR Championship appearance, while An is expected to remain in 15th place and make his first appearance in the playoff finals.

BY CHUAH CHOO CHIANG [[email protected]]