Associated Press

No one is happier about the no-cut policy at the Bridgestone Invitational than Anthony Kim.

He really, really needs to play the four rounds.

After not teeing it up for even a single hole for the past three months while recovering from surgery to repair ligament damage in his left thumb, Kim doesn’t know what to expect.

“I have four days of golf guaranteed, even if I shoot 110,” he said on Tuesday. “I haven’t played much golf, but I’m excited to be here.”

Kim’s thumb was hurting when he won the Houston Open, and when he finished third at the Masters. It reached a point where he knew he had to do something about the injury. The biggest risk was dropping in the Ryder Cup standings because one of his primary goals the rest of the year is making the U.S. side.

“At Quail Hollow I started feeling like other parts of my body were breaking down because of my thumb, and I was starting to compensate. Just to prevent any further damage anywhere else, I wanted to get it taken care of,” he said. “But 100 percent I wanted to be back for the Ryder Cup and try to do as much as I can to make that team. I think the timing was right.”

Kim was No. 2 in the U.S. rankings when he had the surgery on May 5. He’s only dropped to fifth despite the time away.

“To even fall to No. 5 isn’t a great feeling, but I know I can take care of that with some good play and not worry about that,” he said.

Just a couple of hours after he came out of surgery, he called U.S. Ryder Cup captain Corey Pavin. He tried to make his case to not be forgotten while he was out.

“I told him, ‘Listen to this and I’m done, I won’t bother you again. I want to play on your team so bad that the reason I played hurt is to make the team. I promise you if you put me on the team, I’m going to have a good attitude going over there. I’m the kind of player you want,”’ he said.

Kim didn’t do anything terribly dramatic or adventurous during his sabbatical. He hung around his house in Dallas with his friends, spent a lot of time with his mother and got a new French bulldog named Deebo.

“It was nice to spend time with my mom, and it was nice to spend time with my dog and be at home and just be a normal 25-year-old kid who gets to hang out at the house,” he said. “It’s been very nice for me to be at home and not worry about what’s going on in the golf world and just relax. And then come out here with a fresh attitude.”

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Anthony Kim is not listed in the field for this week’s RBC Canadian Open at St. George’s Golf & Country Club · Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Kim has been out since May since having surgery on his thumb.

View the full RBC Canadian Open Filed

Reuters

Anthony Kim is so keen to play for the United States in October’s Ryder Cup that he replied almost immediately to a recent text message from captain Corey Pavin inquiring about his fitness.

Kim, who is second on the U.S. points standings behind Phil Mickelson, withdrew from the Players Championship two weeks ago to undergo surgery on a badly injured left thumb.

“I texted him and asked him to let me know what’s going on with the thumb and keep me current,” Pavin told reporters on Wednesday on the eve of the HP Byron Nelson Championship.

“I guess he took me literally because he called me about an hour after his surgery and we talked for a little while. I just want him to get better and I told him I was glad he made a bunch of points before he went in for surgery.

“He said that was his plan, to play as good as he could and try to get up there so that he could take that time off and come back and be ready to play.

“I think it’s a good plan, but he has to come back and I’ll have to assess how he’s playing, and he has to assess how he’s playing as well.

I’ll see how his thumb is doing and how his rehabilitation is coming along, but he could be a very important part of the team.

“He’s a very prototypical Ryder Cup-type player. He loves to compete, he loves the one-on-one competition, he likes match play, head-to-head, whatever you want to call it. He loves that atmosphere. That’s the type of guy you want to have on the Ryder Cup team.”

Kim, who turns 25 in exactly one month, is expected to miss next month’s U.S. Open and also the British Open in July, but should recover in time for the Ryder Cup.

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by Andrew Foscarin / Score Golf

Following surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament in his left thumb, Anthony Kim had one thought on his mind: Making the 2010 U.S. Ryder Cup Team.

The 25-year-old recently phoned U.S. captain Corey Pavin and indicated how badly he wanted to play for the American side at Celtic Manor come October.

“I’m not an agent, I’m not selling anything,” Kim told the Associated Press. “I told him, ‘Listen to this and I’m done, I won’t bother you again. I want to play on your team so bad that the reason I played hurt is to make the team. I promise you if you put me on the team, I’m going to have a good attitude going over there. I’m the kind of player you want.’”

Despite playing hurt, Kim managed to win the Shell Houston Open in March and rack up three other top 10’s before undergoing surgery earlier this month that will keep him out 10-12 weeks.

Luckily for Canadians, Kim has pegged the RBC Canadian Open as his target return date, admitting that he will likely miss the next two PGA Tour majors, the U.S. and British Opens.

“The tournament I come back for, I’m going to be prepared and feel like I have a great shot to win the tournament,” he said. “There is a little learning curve. What Tiger (Woods) did at the Masters was incredible. But I won’t go to a tournament and have an excuse that I haven’t had time.”

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by Larry Dorman / The New York Times

It appears decision time has arrived for Anthony Kim. Citing the injury to his left thumb that has plagued him for much of the season, he withdrew from The Players Championship on Tuesday to consult with his doctors about if and when to have surgery to reattach the ulnar ligament.

It is clear the question now is more about when than if. Because of modifications Kim has made in his swing to accommodate the injury, he has been noticing some pain in his right shoulder. He does not want to risk adding another injury to the one that will require surgery.

“The injury has been well documented over the past month,” Kim, 24, said in a statement. “And I’ve been doing everything I can to play through it. But it became more of an issue last week and needs to be looked at.

“I’m extremely disappointed to miss The Players Championship, but will consult with my doctors this week and follow their recommendations for treatment.”

Kim’s doctors gave him the latitude to defer surgery because he could not further damage the thumb by playing. He set a preseason goal to make the Ryder Cup team and has performed impressively since early March, when he rebounded from a shaky third round and closed with a 67 to finish second at the Honda Classic. After two average starts, he won the Shell Houston Open, finished third at the Masters and tied for seventh last week at the Quail Hollow Championship. He currently is No. 2 on the Ryder Cup points list.

Last week at Quail Hollow he was paired with the tournament winner, Rory McIlroy, on Sunday, when McIlroy came from four strokes off the pace to win by four with a record-setting 62. Kim shot a respectable round of 71 but was passed like he was standing still. It was evident during the round that his shoulder was bothering him.

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Anthony Kim shot 1 under in the final round of the Quail Hollow to T7.

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by Mick Elliott / Golf Fanhouse

Anthony Kim, seen by pretty much everyone in golf as an uberstar in waiting, has been busy lately living up to many of the lofty expectations.

In his third PGA Tour season Kim, already a three-time Tour winner, is currently riding a month-long hot streak that includes a victory at Houston and a third-place finish at the Masters.

There’s also this week’s Quail Hollow Championship, where, after Saturday’s third-round 70, he’s 5-under and tied for seventh place, four shots back of leader Billy Mayfair’s pacesetting 9-under. Five players are between Kim and the leader — Phil Mickelson (71) and Davis Love III (68) two shots back at 7-under, followed by J.J. Henry, Dustin Johnson and Angel Cabrera trailing by three.

“Obviously, I’ve got to shoot something pretty silly low, because Phil’s up there and Billy is playing well,” Kim said. “It’s going to be a trek, but I can play good out here.”

Kim has been proving he can play good golf pretty much anywhere. And his recent strong performances not only suggest the fulfillment of all those headliner projections, they have Kim openly talking about qualifying for his first U.S. Ryder Cup team: “A huge goal of mine.”

With five months remaining until this year’s matches are played in Wales, he’s second behind only Mickelson on the American points list that automatically qualifies eight players.

So, with every tournament week of success serving as another deposit into a growing savings account, all Kim has to do is decide when to disappear for three months and almost certainly freefall down the points list.

“It’s going to happen, it’s just a matter of when,” Kim said. “The doctor has told me when the pain gets too hard to deal with, that’s when I should do it. But as of now, he said it can’t get any worse, so I guess that’s the good thing. I’m just going to keep playing until I can’t anymore.”

As dilemmas go, Kim has a dandy.

While he may be playing some of his absolute best golf, he’s doing it with a painful left thumb. A ligament has pulled off the bone and needs surgery. For over a year he has played anyway, but lately it has started to become more of a factor.

“It bothers me on some swings, but when you’re making birdies, it doesn’t hurt as bad,” he said. “And then when you make a bogey, it tingles a little bit more.

“So I’m just trying to stay on an even keel as far as my attitude. And once I get done, I just ice it and take some Advil and just try to get through another round.”

The gamble, of course, is that if the pain continues to build, Kim’s game will ultimately pay the price. But to give up three months — probably at least two major championships where Ryder Cup points are doubled — would severely impact Kim’s chances for a place on the U.S. team.

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PGATour.com

Anthony Kim is fighting for his second win of 2010. Replay his up-and-down day. Shot Tracker

PGATour.com

by Hank Gola / Daily News

Anthony Kim has never felt so good on the golf course, even though he feels so bad.

Kim, who won the Houston Open and finished third at the Masters in a two-week stretch, has been playing with an injured left thumb that will require surgery to reattach a ligament. It’s just a question of when, and he’s simply playing too well to stop. He’ll tee off in the Quail Hollow Championship, which he won as a rookie in 2008, on Thursday.

“When you’re making birdies, it doesn’t hurt so bad,” said Kim, who makes more than anyone other than Tiger Woods. “And then when you make a bogey, it tingles a little bit more. I just ice it, take some Advil and just try to make it through another round. I’m just trying to get as many tournaments in before I take care of it.

“The doctor told me when the pain gets too hard to deal with, that’s when I should do it. But as of now, he said it can’t get any worse, so I guess that’s a good thing. I’m just going to keep playing until I can’t anymore.”

Kim’s doctor is also telling him he’ll have to miss between two and three months, including rehab, so he’s trying to figure out just when that break should occur. He’s No. 3 on the PGA Tour money list and No. 10 in the world. He knows he’s not going to be able to make it through the end of the season.

“I don’t think I’m going to take that chance because I want to play in the Ryder Cup…That’s a huge goal of mine,” he said. “It was probably one of the greatest moments I’ve ever had (in 2008). I want to be healthy for that. I just want to time that right.”

“But at the same time, I want to play in all the majors, too, so in golf, there’s not really a good time to take time off.”

Kim, of course, has to earn enough points to make the Ryder Cup team.

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Anthony Kim birdied his 18th to move within three shots of the leader Marcus Fraser on a shortened first day of the Ballantine’s Championship.

Tournament organisers were dealt a blow early on Thursday as thick fog descended on the course and caused a five-hour delay.

Worksop’s Mark Foster was leading the way after six holes when play was halted, having made an eagle and two birdies, and he carried on the momentum when play resumed with further birdies at eight, nine, 10 and 13. Bogeys on 15 and 17 saw him slip back to six-under, but he is still well placed after 18 holes.

For all Foster’s good work, he was overshadowed by Australian playing partner Fraser who made seven birdies in a round of 65.

Kim is one of the bigger names in the field and he looks sure to be in contention for the title after carding a four-birdie 68.

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