Go Anthony Kim

Newswire / Los Angeles Times

Anthony Kim advanced to the Volvo World Match Play Championship semifinals Friday despite losing to Scott Strange by three holes in his final-round match at Finca Cortesin in Casares, Spain.

Strange needed to beat Kim by at least four holes to advance and was 4-up going to the par-five 18th, but Kim took the hole after hitting his second shot to within four feet. Strange put his third shot into a bunker before conceding the hole.

Kim will face undefeated Robert Allenby in the semifinals. Allenby beat Oliver Wilson by three holes. Angel Cabrera will face Ross Fisher in the other semifinal.

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by Mark Reason / Telegraph.co.uk

Robert Allenby recently accused Anthony Kim of coming in sideways at four o’clock in the morning and called him the loosest cannon on the American Presidents Cup team and golf’s current John Daly.

However, Kim was anything but the baddest golfer on the planet on the first day of the Volvo World Matchplay here as he won his matches against Paul Casey and Retief Goosen and then talked about his fear of his mother.

The young American said of his reputation for partying: “There’s a time and a place for everything. My mum has been telling me that since I was four years old. I try to listen to her. She still scares me.

“Sometimes it’s easy to forget and just say I’m 24 years old, I’ll do whatever I want. But for the last year and a half I understand this is my job.”

Asked about Allenby’s comments, Kim cheerfully said: “I’ve no idea what you’re talking about. It’s in the past. We’ve moved on.”

In fact we might be about to get a replay. If Allenby beats Oliver Wilson today, then Kim and Allenby are almost certain to meet in the semi-finals. Asked if there might be a lingering edge, Kim said: “My caddie and me entertain ourselves pretty well out there.” That will be a yes, then.

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PGATour.com

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — For the briefest moment, it looked as though Justin Leonard only had to pick up his coin for the Americans to win the final match Thursday and take another big lead on opening day at The Presidents Cup.

First, there was some confusion over whether to concede his 3-foot putt.

Then came a shocking miss from Leonard.

The United States still wound up with a 3-2 lead at Harding Park, even if the International team claimed a partial victory.

“At the end, we were pretty fortunate to have 2 points,” Ernie Els said. “That’s one of the better starts we’ve had, believe it or not, for the last three Cups or so. So we are not too despondent about today.”

After Tiger Woods and Steve Stricker dominated early, and Phil Mickelson and Anthony Kim came to life late in their Foursomes match, a bizarre finish in the final match made it unclear who actually had the momentum going into Friday.

“We wanted to get out of the day with pretty close to a push, and I’m very, very happy,” International captain Greg Norman said.

Leonard and Jim Furyk had a 1-up lead playing the par-5 18th hole, and Leonard hit a splendid fairway metal to the green that left the Americans on the verge of another full point, especially after Furyk lagged the eagle putt to 3 feet. Retief Goosen hit his approach right of the green, Y.E. Yang chipped to 4 feet and Goosen made the birdie putt.

Then, the Goose forgot the score.

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by PGATour.com

Each week during the 2009 season, PGATOUR.COM has spotlighted one key player in the field. (Click here to see previous spotlights.) For this week’s Quail Hollow Championship, it’s defending champion Anthony Kim.

Five things you should know about Anthony Kim

• Like a lot of players on TOUR, Kim loves to play poker. And no wonder: His initials, A.K., could easily stand for Ace-King, one of the top starting hands in No-Limit Texas Hold ‘Em.
• Briefly attended the University of Oklahoma before turning pro. On the day of the 2009 college football’s BCS title game between Oklahoma and Florida, he was paired with Florida graduate Camilo Villegas at the Mercedes Championship.
• Grips down on the club more than almost anyone on TOUR. Kim got into the habit of choking down on every club early in his golfing life, and he’s never wavered from this habit. It doesn’t hurt his distance — Kim is consistently among the longest hitters on TOUR despite his 5-foot-10, 160-pound frame.
• Is arguably the biggest NBA fan on TOUR. Kim grew up playing hoops in L.A., and he remains a huge Lakers fan even though he makes his residence in Dallas.
• Finished fourth in the PGA TOUR Playoffs for the FedExCup after a stunning run in the Playoffs in which he finished tied for third twice in four weeks (BMW CXhampionship, THE TOUR Championship presented by Coca-Cola).

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