With latest win, Kim appears ready to fill Woods' absence
By Helen Ross, PGATOUR.com Chief of Correspondents
BETHESDA, Md. -- For the better part of the last two weeks, ever since Tiger Woods' left knee was sliced open by that scalpel, sportswriters and TV's talking heads have speculated on who would step up in his absence.
We may now have our answer.
Meet Anthony Kim, who won the AT&T National hosted by Tiger Woods on Sunday at Congressional Country Club.
The victory was the uber-talented 23-year-old's second in his last five starts. In the last decade only Kim, Tiger Woods, Sergio Garcia and Adam Scott have won twice in a single year before their 25th birthdays.
"Winning out here is so tough that anytime you get an opportunity to be in the hunt, it feels great," acknowledged Kim, who also won the Wachovia Championship in May. "And to capitalize on the two chances I've had of late feels wonderful."
Kim looks to have some staying power, too. He's already got four top-three finishes this year. He's fifth in the FedExCup standings, fifth on the PGA TOUR money list and sixth in the Ryder Cup standings, which has got to make Captain Paul Azinger ecstatic.
Make no mistake about it, this second-generation Korean-American is the real deal. Whether he is the long-awaited rival to Woods remains to be seen, but he's certainly making a pretty strong case for himself -- even if he won't admit it.
"I can't answer that, because guys like Sergio and Justin Rose, there's upcoming guys right now," Kim said candidly. "Jason Day is a great player, and there's going to be quite a few challengers, and hopefully somebody can step up.
"I haven't done enough to say I'm the guy. I'd like to think that I can work my way into that position. But right now, I still have a ways to go."
Kim took another big step at Congressional, though. He tackled a major-championship caliber golf course and shot four rounds in the 60s, including Sunday's stellar 65. His playing partner, Dean Wilson, who tied for third, was impressed.
"Anthony's got such a good looking swing," Wilson said. "He hits the ball solidly all the time and hits it hard. He's excited about playing. He plays hard. He wants to be in the limelight. He craves that, as a matter of fact. He's got exceptional skills and I think we are just seeing the tip of the iceberg with this kid, he's got real talent.
Fred Funk, who first met Kim when he was 15 years old and already hitting it 320 yards, agreed.
"He's fearless and he's got tremendous length for a little guy, and he's just got that arrogance, cocky attitude that you need to have when he's in the position that he's in, and he's got the game to back it up," Funk said. "So that's all that really needs to be said."
Can he win a major? Kim's next shot comes in two weeks at Royal Birkdale, so he definitely appears to be peaking at the right time.
"Who knows?" Wilson said. "He definitely has the game. I don't think anybody would doubt that. So sure, why not?"
Kim grew up watching the video "Tiger's Triple" that tells the story of his three straight U.S. Junior and three consecutive U.S. Amateur titles. On Sunday, he spoke with his childhood hero on his cell phone near the 18th green.
"He congratulated me, of course, and told me to just keep working hard and keep it up and the sky's the limit and there's no reason to stop now," Kim said. "That means the world to me. I get chills down my back when I think about it, because I grew up idolizing him.
"He is the Michael Jordan of golf, and to come out ten years after him and have this opportunity to play in his golf tournament, and be on the PGA TOUR and live my dream is truly a wonderful feeling."
There was a time, though, when Kim freely admits that he wasn't as dedicated to the game as he needed to be. In fact, he'll bluntly tell you that "my preparation and work ethic couldn't have gotten any worse."
Mark O'Meara and Jeff Sluman took Kim under their wing. But the real wake-up call, he says, came at the BMW Championship last year, the third -- and Kim's final -- event in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup. And it came courtesy of Woods.
Kim had just gotten to Cog Hill when he ran into the game's No. 1 player. Woods had already practiced and was headed to the first tee. Kim, on the other hand, barely had time to woof down a breakfast burrito before his starting time.
"By the time I got out there, I had time to hit about three, four putts and I had to go tee off," said Kim, who went on to tie for 52nd while Woods won. "I ended up feeling like I played pretty well and got drummed. ... Really that was quite a low point in my ... short career.
"And to feel like I wasn't doing myself justice to act that way, and prepare that way, I just took a step back and said, if I'm going to do this, I'm going to do it the right way and I've been doing it ever since."
Kim loves the butterflies in his stomach, the excitement of the hunt, too much not to give it his best effort now. And the results speak for themselves -- more than $3.2 million in earnings and two wins in just 14 starts this year.
All of which begs the original question. Will Kim be the one to do what others have only threatened to do and step up?
"Well, I think any time there's a younger guy that plays good, there's always a little bit of buzz that's created and people are looking and hoping to find the guy that's going to challenge Tiger," he said.
"Right now, he's obviously injured and not going to be out here. ... Hopefully other people will get to know golf besides Tiger. He's done so much for the game. But at the same time, we need to step up and I think it's going to be an important time for all the young guys."
Shop your favorite brand name golf equipment and accessories at SHOP.PGATOUR.COM
FANTASY
PGATOUR.com is part of Turner Sports Digital, part of the Turner Sports & Entertainment Digital Network 