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Change Points Kim In Right Direction

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 10, 2008

Mark O'Meara saw the change in Anthony Kim seven months ago, when he barely knew him.

Kim had finished his rookie year on the PGA Tour with only a reputation, and not the kind a 22-year-old needed. No one questioned his talent, only his temper. He often spoke without thinking, and he spent more time soaking up the night life than working on his day job.

As teammates in the Merrill Lynch Shootout in December, Kim told O'Meara that he had made some mistakes and needed some advice.

"I just conveyed to Anthony, 'You've got as much talent or more than any other player I've ever seen besides Tiger.' " O'Meara said. "... He could win multiple tournaments a year, easily, and win major championships."

O'Meara, 51, is a pied piper of sorts. Remember, he is the veteran who befriended Tiger Woods when the phenom arrived on the tour.

In this case, he might be a prophet.

Kim broke through with his first victory in early May at the Wachovia Championship on a major-caliber course in Quail Hollow, and he was facing a very strong field.

Validation came last week at Congressional, where the U.S. Open will be held in three years, when Kim played the final 22 holes without a bogey en route to a two-shot win that put him in elite company.

•Not since Woods in 2000 has an American younger than 25 won two times on the PGA Tour in the same season.

•Over the past 15 years, the only players in that age bracket with multiple victories in the same season are Kim, Adam Scott, Sergio Garcia, Woods and Phil Mickelson.

WIE GETS EXEMPTION

Michelle Wie has been given a sponsor's exemption to play in the $2.25 million Canadian Women's Open, the Royal Canadian Golf Association said.

Wie, who played last year at Royal Mayfair in Edmonton, was added to an already strong field for the Aug. 14-17 event at the Ottawa Hunt and Golf Club.

"Michelle's global notoriety will no doubt attract a following at Ottawa Hunt, and I'm sure golf fans will offer her a tremendous welcome as she challenges the world's best players," tournament director Sean Van Kesteren said in a statement.

OUT OF WORK

PGA Tour money leader Tiger Woods is out for the season, and so is caddie Steve Williams.

Caddies are a caring group, especially when it comes to their own, so it was only fitting that they take up a collection for a guy whose player won't be earning any more money on the PGA Tour until he recovers from reconstructive knee surgery.

Two weeks ago at the Travelers Championship, the caddies put up a sign in their trailer that said, "Steve Williams Benevolent Fund," offering caddies a chance to donate to the cause.

For a money jar, they used a shot glass.

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