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By Helen Ross
PGATOUR.com Chief of Correspondents

BETHESDA, Md. -- Tiger Woods didn't particularly like relinquishing the inaugural AT&T National trophy to K.J. Choi on Sunday.

Not that he doesn't like the talented South Korean -- far from it. Woods plays to win, though, so that tie for sixth, and a weekend where he couldn't muster one of his patented charges, left something to be desired.

There was no disputing that Woods was a winner as a tournament host, however.

Tiger Woods greets miltary personnel on Thursday. (WireImage)

The first AT&T National came together in just 116 days. And the July 4th weekend date brought huge crowds to Congressional Country Club -- more than 74,000 on the weekend and 139,000 overall -- to see the game's best play on a U.S. Open layout.

The tournament was about more than birdies and bogeys, though. Woods took the opportunity to use the forum to honor the memory of his late father, Earl, a Green Beret who served in Vietnam, as well as servicemen around the world.

The AT&T National began with a moving ceremony that featured the Air Force Silent Drill Team, a Navy band and a flyover of Blackhawk helicopters. Military personnel worked as starters all week, members of the Wounded Warriors Project were entertained and a group of Green Berets came up from North Carolina on their own to help.

"To have a detachment come out from Ft. Bragg is awfully special for me because that's what my dad did," Woods said. "To see those guys out here on Wednesday just made it that much more special for me, because my dad would have just really got a big kick out of that."

The charity dollars raised by the event -- and make no mistake about it, it will be a big number -- will go toward the development of a Tiger Woods Learning Center that would be built in the Washington, D.C. area.

"This tournament in general has been a bigger success than I think any one of us could have imagined," Woods said. "To have the support we've gotten from the people here; the fans; the military have come out and have really made this tournament very special, and I think everyone who has been a part of it has really worked hard to make the tournament special."

Jim Furyk, who tied for third, said the fan support was "unreal," adding that he was "amazed at ... the grand feeling of the event." He wasn't alone in his assessment.

"That's pretty incredible, really, to get all of this put together and to be able to hold a tournament of this magnitude," runner-up Steve Stricker agreed. "It felt like a mini major out there, you know, because of the course that we're on and the tournament host of Tiger Woods, and the field that we had.

"So put all that together, and you had a great-feeling tournament, and it was run really well. And to add the twist of Fourth of July and to have the military people around I thought was great. I just thought it was a great event and I will be back."

Choi will be back, too, as defending champion. He has now won six times on the PGA TOUR, including twice this year. The affable South Korean's other 2007 victory happened to come at the Memorial Tournament, hosted by Jack Nicklaus.

Choi: "My life dream is to become the first Asian to ever have won a major." (WireImage)

"Both wins are just very special to me," Choi, who won by three strokes, said through an interpreter. "I can't really say which which one makes me feel better. They are both valuable.

"One thing I can say is Tiger, this week's trophy is a lot heavier than Jack's trophy, if that means anything. All I can say is that I have a lot of respect for both players and to be able to win in their tournament is just I can't even express in words. "

Choi flashed a shy smile. The son of a rice farmer, Choi learned to play the game by reading one of Nicklaus' books. He turned to golf at the age of 16 after realizing he didn't have the upper body strength to continue power-lifting. He has the Woods' patented fist-pump down now, too.

A devout Christian, who gave $90,000 of his earnings from his victory at the 2005 Chrysler Classic of Greensboro to the Korean Presbyterian Church there, Choi was thrilled at the support he received from the crowd at Congressional.

"The fans were just tremendous," Choi said. "They were terrific, very diverse. I mean, even the American fans were very supportive of me. They were cheering me on. But, you know, especially the Korean fans, they were great. I can't even put into words how they have supported me here. It's probably the biggest Korean gallery that I've seen on the PGA TOUR.

"This definitely was a very exciting one for me, and I felt like seeing this diverse gallery and the fans out there, that it's not just a win for me; it's a win for everybody else. We're here to share the fun, the excitement."

Among the signs in the crowd was one urging "Tank" to victory. That's Choi's nickname, bestowed on him four years ago by CBS television announcer Ian Baker-Finch, who observed that he was moving forward like the armored vehicle.

"I like the meaning that's in it," said Choi, who closed with a 68 on Sunday. "It's similar to what I think, how I've lived my life. It's never looking back, don't look back, just move forward just like a tank. Just progress.

"It's how I felt when I first came over to the U.S. starting out, you know, it was a new culture, new language, everything was new. There were a lot of hurdles for me to overcome, but I just took it day by day, just believed in myself, trusted in the Lord and just moved forward with it and tried my best.

"I think that's symbolic of what Tank is."

Choi certainly moved forward on Sunday. He jumped to fourth in the FedExCup standings and solidified his spot on Gary Player's International Team for The Presidents Cup.

Not to mention, he'll head to Carnoustie as one of the favorites at the British Open -- along with the host of the AT&T National.

"That's my life goal, my life dream is to become the first Asian to ever have won a major," Choi said "And that's something that I'm going to strive very hard and work at it."