Amid all the prominent names on the Masters leaderboard, there's
one player who just doesn't seem to fit.
Then again, K.J. Choi has been there all three rounds.
No reason for him to go away now.
Still right in the mix after his third straight sub-par round
- even if no one seemed to notice - the South Korean heads into
Sunday's finale at Augusta National just four strokes off the lead.
He's right in the middle of a star-studded board that includes
three of the top four in the world golf rankings, No. 1 Tiger
Woods, No. 3 Phil Mickelson and No. 4 Lee Westwood, plus
sentimental favorite Fred Couples.
``I'm really having a good time this week,'' said Choi, who
shot a 2-under 70 that left him four strokes off Westwood's pace,
three behind Mickelson and tied for third with Woods. ``I feel good
right now, and I'm just going to keep to my routine and just keep
on praying. You never know how this tournament is going to
finish.''
Choi has been paired all three rounds with Woods, and they've
matched each other virtually stroke for stroke. They're both at
8-under 208, so they'll get to play together one more time - in the
most important round of all.
``Unbelievable, absolutely fantastic,'' said Choi, ranked
43rd in the world. ``I'm used to him after three rounds, so having
the same pairing is fantastic.''
The South Korean has been steady as can be, making only five
bogeys over the first three rounds. He's not doing anything all
that spectacular, but he's not made any major mistakes, either.
That's sort of how he had hoped it would go, especially when
he learned he'd play with Woods the first two rounds. The world's
best player was coming off a five-month layoff and a humiliating
sex scandal, so it figured that no one would be paying much
attention to Choi.
That was again the case Saturday, when Augusta National was
in an uproar as spectacular shots kept falling all over the back
nine. Mickelson made back-to-back eagles. Woods ripped off three
straight birdies to get back in contention. The 50-year-old Couples
and Ricky Barnes both holed out chips.
Choi was doing some good work, too - not that anyone seemed
to notice.
``He's great,'' Woods said. ``I've played with him a lot over
the years. K.J. is just a great guy, and on top of that he's
learned a lot of English. Our conversations are getting a little
bit longer now.''
Choi rolled in a birdie at the signature 12th hole, took
advantage of both par-5s on the back side and finished with a
string of pars. Over the first three rounds Choi is even on the
front side, but has played the back at a combined 8 under.
Does he need to be more aggressive on the opening holes
Sunday?
``I don't know,'' Choi replied. ``Hopefully I can hit the tee
shots and get going a couple of holes and made birdies early, get
off to a good start.''
When Augusta National announced the pairings for Thursday and
Friday, Choi welcomed the idea of playing with Woods, saying he
enjoyed big crowds that were sure to follow their every step and
didn't mind if the patrons were mostly focused on his playing
partner.
But Choi has won over the crowds with his relaxed demeanor,
and he keeps himself calm by praying and singing religious hymns.
``I think the fans are really showing their love equally to
everybody, especially to me,'' he said. ``Every hole, I feel like
the crowds, they are supporting me as well. It's just been a very
comfortable week.''
If he can put together a dazzling round Sunday, maybe
something along the lines of his opening 67, he might just steal
away that green jacket from all this big-name rivals.
Choi isn't sure what it will take to win his first major
title.
``No idea,'' he said. ``Everybody is playing so well right
now. It's really hard to determine at this stage what the winning
score is going to be and who's going to come out on top.
``I'm just going to get some good rest and get prepared.''
