2005 US Women's Open

In this crazy LPGA season of 2005, there have already been some truly unexpected occurrences. Se Ri Pak, the Hall of Famer, the legend in the making, has gone in just a few short months from unassailable talent to player struggling to make cuts. Grace Park, last year's #2 player in the world, and winner of the Vare Trophy for low scoring average, has only two top tens for the season, and is not even in the top 30 on the money list. Coming into this week's event, the top Korean player on tour was Gloria Park, not a player who has been known for consistency in the past. And Jimin Kang, a player with a sum total of one top twenty to her credit, managed an improbable run to her first LPGA win at the Corning Classic, not only beating Annika Sorenstam in the process, but scoring a hole in one to take the lead with just a few holes to go

That shot looked destined to be the shot of the year for the Korean players. How often has a hole in one been so timely in a tournament? In the last six years, I cannot even think of one other instance. But we all had seen nothing yet. For an obscure Korean player saved a shot in her bag for a moment so opportune, it's hard to think of many moments that even compare. Like Jimin, this player had barely registered on the LPGA radar in her two years on tour; only one top ten to her credit, and more missed cuts than made ones. But this player had far more on the ball than she was letting on, indeed, than she even may have been aware of. And when all the players had left the brutally tough course at Cherry Hills, the site of the 60th US Women's Open, she was the one who had come closest to taming it, finally beating her last challenger into submission with a shot that was nothing short of a miracle. That player was Birdie Kim.

Birdie Kim: an unlikely champion

Birdie on Sunday (click to enlarge)

Her coach might have known something the rest of us didn't. Bob Toski is a 78 year old golf pro, but 50 years ago, he was one of the top golfers in the world, even leading the PGA money list in 1953 over many legendary luminaries. After he retired, he took up coaching, and he once went to South Korea to help the young players there. The Korean golf association didn't forget this, and when they were looking for a coach for a promising young amateur named Ju Yun Kim who wanted to try her professional luck in the States, they gave Toski a call.

Kim already had proved herself a strong talent in Korea. She had been a member of the 1998 - 2000 Korean national amateur team, and racked up 19 wins as an amateur. When Toski got a look at her, he was duly impressed: "It was as good a swing as anyone playing," Toski said. "She had the grip, the posture, the tempo and rhythm. Rating swings on a 1 to 10 scale, it was close to a 10, and I'm as tough as General Patton on players. "

Toski felt that he had a world beater on his hands, and told everyone he knew about it. But not many people believed him. Even Ju Yun herself wasn't sure. But Toski also knew she needed work. Her swing was indeed close to perfection, but she needed to learn more about course management and strategy. So he focused on 'playing lessons', where the two of them would play a full round and he would help her devise strategies. He also taught her how to control her shots better, and gave her greater flexibility with her game. The two of them got along famously.

But when Ju Yun started her first LPGA season in 2004, she decided to leave Toski in favor of the Leadbetter academy and the former coach of her idol Se Ri Pak, David Leadbetter. Toski suspected that this move was encouraged by her father, but regardless of who initiated it, it was not a good one for Ju Yun. Her stats in 2004 were frankly miserable. In 20 events played, she made the cut only three times, finishing no better than 42nd in any event all season. She returned to Q-School in the Fall, and surprisingly regained her exempt card. But she knew she would have to make some changes before the 2005 season. She made two.

The first change she made was a seemingly superficial one: she decided to change her English name. Her reasons? There were so many Kims on tour in America that she felt she did not stand out at all. For the average American fan, it would be difficult to differentiate between Mi Hyun Kim and Young Kim, Soo Young Kim and Joo Mi Kim and Ju Yun Kim. But what name to take on? Her dad gave her a few options and she chose 'Birdie', because a "Birdie is good in golf, and it's good for me", as she explained. But the move might have had more emotional resonance than she realized. Giving herself a powerful, affirmative name like Birdie in a way affirmed what she was capable of doing on course. It also might have given her a goose to encourage her to play better; you don't want to have a great golf name like 'Birdie' and then play poorly, do you? (By the way, she did not name herself 'Eagle' because, as she explained it, that sounds like a boy's name!).

Birdie fought hard all week

Birdie drives (click to enlarge)

Her second move was to leave Leadbetter and return to Toski. Toski was thrilled to have her back, and before long, their relationship was back to its usual familiar self. And, lo and behold, the move paid dividends. Though she was still not exactly burning up the course, she did noticeably improve in 2005. She was missing fewer cuts, making more money, and feeling more confident. She even managed a 7th place finish, her first top 10, at the Chick-Fil-A Championship. This was good enough to leave her in 66th place on the money list coming into the US Women's Open. Certainly not superstar stuff, but a positive step nonetheless over missing 17 of 20 cuts.

Toski continued to be Birdie Kim's biggest believer. He actually called an out of state reporter and encouraged him to talk to Birdie at the Open, telling him that this girl was a superstar waiting to happen. Even Birdie was skeptical. She knew that it was pretty likely that Annika Sorenstam was going to grab the third leg of the Grand Slam this week in Denver, Colorado. But Toski still believed that good things were going to happen soon."Talent like that, it can explode in a minute," he said. "She had all the qualities. If you knew the golf swing, you could see this (her performance at the Open) coming."