Grin and Shout

If there's one thing you can say about 20 year old Korean American golfer Christina Kim, it's that she plays golf with a lot of enthusiasm. Indeed, you could go farther and say that she does everything with enthusiasm. She's having a ball out there, and she isn't afraid to let you know it. In a league mostly populated with quieter types (not that there's anything wrong with that, of course), Christina is a bracing dose of rock and roll and flash. Her clothes are distinctly her own, her trademark beret immediately makes her stand out in the crowd, and her tendency to comment on her every shot (sometimes loudly) make her a fan favorite. But more than that, it is her interaction with the fans that wins hearts. Win or lose, she's smiling, waving to galleries, signing autographs, joking, and generally wearing her heart on her sleeve. There is no other player quite like her.

Christina plays golf in much the same way as she acts: all out. Sometimes that leads her into trouble, but sometimes it produces electrifying results. She admitted to this reporter last year, when we talked exclusively for this magazine, that she really does not know a lot about her technique. Everything she does is based on muscle memory and intuition. But when her intuition is giving her the right insights, she can produce truly memorable golf, and her results at this week's State Farm Classic were a prime example.

Christina Kim is well known for her expressive
style of play

Hee-Won holds her check for winning the
State Farm Series in 2003; below,
Mi Hyun won it in 2002

The State Farm Classic is a tournament that has been good to first time winners; indeed, there was a stretch of several years during which each winner was as unlikely as the year before. A couple of Korean players managed to win their first ever event in Springfield, Illinois: in 1998, Pearl Sinn, after ten years of not quite living up to her potential, managed at last to break into the win column here. The next year, she finished second. Those are still her two best LPGA finishes to date. In 1999, it was rookie Mi Hyun Kim who collected her first victory on the Rail golf course. And in 2002, Kimmie looked good to capture a third crown for the year when she entered the final round deadlocked with Patricia Meunier-Lebouc; but it was the French woman who managed her first ever victory that year, edging out Peanut, who wound up in a second place tie with fellow Korean Se Ri Pak.

Last year, the event was shortened due to inclement weather, and Candie Kung, the third round leader, was named the winner. Hee-Won Han did not win that week, but finished well enough to claim the State Farm Series trophy. This series is a special bonus pool that is determined by finishes in State Farm series events throughout the year. Se Ri Pak was leading coming into the State Farm Classic last year; this final event in the series is worth triple points, however, and Han did well enough to nip Se Ri in the bud for the title. The year before, it was Mi Hyun Kim who claimed the Series title, so this was definitely a Korean tradition. But it was not looking good for a repeat performance, for Lorena Ochoa had a nice lead coming into this final event. Se Ri, who was second, would probably need to win to pull it off, unlikely given her recent form.

In the first round, it was Christina Kim, not the other more well known Seoul Sisters, who made the biggest splash. Quite simply, she shot one of the most spectacular rounds of the year by anyone. The Rail golf course, on which the State Farm Classic is contested, is not exactly a US Open level challenge. In fact, those who are putting well often take the crown. But still, few had seen a round the likes of the one Christina put up on the first day. After two pars to start, she ripped off four consecutive birdies, then added another on 18 (she started on the 10th hole) to go out in five under par. She would get to 7 under before a bogey on the fifth hole knocked her back to -6. Nonetheless, this was a sensational start, and she doubtless would have been quite happy with it. But she was far from done. All she did after that was birdie every remaining hole, to post a 10 under par 62 and take the lead by the end of the day by two shots. An 11 birdie, one bogey 10 under par, that is. Wow! Smiling all the way, electrifying the galleries, she had managed to tie the course record and shoot her third career 62. Game on!

Christina Kim was all smiles after
shooting 62 in the first round

Grace during round 2. She was hampered
during the week by an eye infection
that forced her to go to the hospital
before the tournament began
AP Photo

Meanwhile, there were several other Korean players who made a bit of noise. Mi Hyun Kim collected a tidy 68, Se Ri Pak started with a 69, and so did Hee-Won Han. Soo Yun Kang continued her decent play of late with a 4 under 68 of her own. Perhaps most surprising was that three Korean players who had struggled all year all had good rounds to start their week. Sunny Lee shot a 2 under 70 to put her in good position to make her first cut of 2004, and Il Mi Chung, who has thus far had a very weak rookie year, amassed a 1 under 71. Even Jenny Park-Choi was under par, shooting a 70.

Grace Park, meanwhile, had it a bit tougher. She later revealed to her fans that she is still not near 100%. She had an eye infection that forced her to miss several days of practice, and even sent her to the ER before the event began. Her back also flared up on Friday morning, and she was in excruciating pain for the next day or two. But she hung in there and shot a respectable 1 under par 71 on the first day. Let's hope that she isn't pushing herself too fast to come back from her injury problems; her fans would rather have her miss a few events than get a serious injury from coming back too soon (she has already done this once in her career: in her rookie season, she kept coming back from injuries too soon, making things worse each time, eventually derailing her progress significantly for the next year or two).

Now the big question was: could Christina continue to play well, or would she have an inevitable fall off following her brilliant first round? The answer came on Friday in spectacular fashion. Though she later admitted she was playing a lot more sloppy golf on Friday, her results were still plenty impressive. On the front nine, she collected four more birdies without a bogey, and moved to 14 under. She just kept roaring away, so that, by the time she reached the 15th hole, she was an incredible 17 under par, with a five shot lead. And she still had a few holes to go! Alas, she had trouble with the par 5 15th, and got her only bogey of the day. But a 6 under par 66, to follow her incredible first round 62, showed that Christina was not ready to go away any time soon. She ended the day with a four shot lead and a great chance to collect her first ever win.

Other players impressed. Il Mi Chung, who started with a solid 71, really caught fire on Friday, shooting a perfect five birdie 67 to not only make the cut, but put herself in the vicinity of the leaderboard. At last, the Smile Queen was showing Americans some of the form that had made her a top player in her native land. Jenny Park-Choi also made the cut, but Sunny Lee stumbled and missed the cut again.

Grace continued to struggle, but it was Se Ri who really had it rough. She just simply could not hit fairways to save her life. After finishing second at the Farr a few weeks ago, it looked like she was about to turn a corner. But since then, it has been tough going again. She was well ahead of the cut after round 1 here, but by the middle of round 2, she was again in danger of missing it. Then she rallied, and shot three consecutive birdies to move back to 2 under par. It looked likely she would make the cut, but then bogied her final hole to finish -1. Fortunately for her, that ended up being just enough to make the cut easily, but she wound up finishing in 66th place, another very disappointing finish for the struggling star.

Christina kept laughing on Friday
AP Photo

Another bad event for Se Ri