South Korea’s Tom Kim, playing for his eighth consecutive week, closed with back-to-back birdies to grab a two-stroke lead after Thursday’s opening round of the US PGA Travelers Championship. On the eve of his 22nd birthday, Kim fired a bogey-free eight-under-par 62 with eight birdies at TPC River Highlands in Cromwell, Connecticut. “It was nice,” Kim said. “Played a little windy. Had a few testers coming in to keep the momentum going, some nice putts to go in to finish.” Kim sank a 14-foot birdie putt at the 17th hole and a seven-footer at 18 to seize a two-stroke edge over Americans Rickie Fowler, Will Zalatoris, Kurt Kitayama and Akshay Bhatia. It’s the last signature-level event of the PGA season, with a limited field and no cut.