Mi Hyun Kim

Mi Hyun Kim has always been a consistent player; in her four years on the LPGA tour, she has finished in the top ten on the money list every year. However, she always hovered around the lower end of the top ten; 8th, 7th, 6th, always just a notch below the top players. In 2002, she took a step up, winning twice, notching three more second place finishes, and claiming a fourth place finish on the money list. This was a definite improvement over 2001, where, despite three second place finishes, she was unable to get a win.

Kimmie's tendency is to get off to a slow start; the courses the tour plays early in the year are generally not suited to her game. She usually makes a few top twenties, maybe a few top tens, but isn't really in contention. Then she suddenly makes a run at a title or two. The next thing you know, she is in the mix every week.

For this year, her goal should be to raise her game in the Majors, where, except for a few times, she has not been much of a factor. How she handles being in the hunt at any tournament, with a chance to put it away, will be another key indicator: she has traditionally struggled with her swing at just the wrong moments in a tournament.

By this point in 2002, Mi Hyun had played in 9 tournaments. Her best finish was a third at the second event of the year. She also had a fifth and two other top tens. Significantly, 7 of these tournaments were top twenties. As I said above, a lot of decent finishes, but not really in contention most of the time. Her second worst finish came at the Nabisco, the only Major she played in this span; there she was 21st. Her scoring average was 70.78, almost identical to Se Ri's in 2002. She had a few impressive scores in that span, notably a 64 to start the Takefuji (her first round of the year!), a 65 to start the Welch's Championship (but she also shot a 76 and a 74 that week to go along with a 65 and 66), and a 66 in the second round of the Chick-Fil-A. As far as Mi Hyun is concerned, though, two things stand out: that she was really only in contention once in those nine events, and that she was not in contention at the Major. A decent start to the year, but nothing that indicated the explosion that was soon to come.

Now let's look at 2003. So far Mi Hyun has played in seven events, as compared to nine last year. Again, we see fair consistency: five of those seven finishes were top twenties. But only two have been top tens, and in only one case, the Michelob Light Classic, was Mi Hyun really in contention (she finished 5th, her best finish of 2003). Most tellingly of all, though, her worst finish by far came in the most important tournament, the Kraft Nabisco. There she finished a dismal 57th, 20 shots out of first place. This means she hasn't had a truly good Major since the 2001 British Open, where she finished second. For a player who finished fourth on the money list last year, who has as much talent as Mi Hyun does, it is imperative she show something more in the biggest events of the year.

Meanwhile, her scoring is pretty much of a wash from last year, with her average being 70.61. That's a little better than 2002, but keep in mind that averaged into that are the scores achieved on the criminally easy course they played the Welch's Circle K on this year. Take those out, and Kimmie's best score all year is a 67. So her scoring is also down from 2002. Even though she usually starts out slowly, she has started just a little slower than last year.

One possible explanation is the fact that she has switched to new clubs for 2003. For the first time she has a club contract, with Asian club maker Honma. Among the changes this forced on her is the removal of the 11 wood from her bag, since Honma does not make that club. These sorts of changes can cause disruption in a player's success, and no doubt she is working feverishly to correct the problems she has run into adapting to these clubs. Another possible issue is that Honma, unlike Western club makers, do not have people located in the States to make adjustments to their clubs. Who knows if this has been another difficulty for her, but it might have been.

Grade:

B-