John Huh, second from right, is congratulated by, from left, D.H. Lee, Kevin Na and K.J. Choi. (Michael Owen Baker/Staff Photographer)
John Huh was so nervous Tuesday he could remember only one other time in his life that was more nerve-wracking.
He was at Riviera Country Club for a practice round at the Northern Trust Open, where he's playing for the first time in his young career.
Huh, who played high school golf at Crescenta Valley, didn't even have a club in his hands. He was clutching a podium in a ballroom at Riviera and talking to a room of Korean-American dignitaries, six Korean professional golfers and reporters after accepting the crystal trophy for being named PGA Tour Rookie of the Year.
"It was my dream to be on the PGA Tour," Huh said. "It's such an honor and privilege. It's hard to describe (my feelings) when it was announced. Here I am with the trophy and all the media in front of me.
"It's a thrill and dream to be here. I can say I'm a lucky guy in the world."
Winning an eight-hole, two-man playoff at the Mayakoba Classic in Mexico over Robert Allenby for his first tour victory was nothing compared to this.
"That was 50-50. The odds were good," Huh said with a smile and shrug of his shoulders.
Speaking in front of people is more daunting than anything. His acceptance speech was short and sweet and charming. He was battling dry mouth.
"That's the second-most nervous situation I've ever been," Huh said. "The first was at the BMW. I had to play good that week."
The BMW Championship is part of the FedEx Cup playoff
system, and he's the first rookie to play in all four playoff events. He won $2.8 million last year, bought his parents their first home and he and his family moved to Dallas. There was no "I" in the rookie award for Huh when he called his father to tell him the good news.
"I said, `We did it,"' Huh recalled. "It wasn't me. The whole family did it. That was big for us. It was a great honor. They felt proud of what I've done and what we've done so far."
Huh has done well in pressure situations inside the ropes, which is a good thing considering his career choice.
"I'm a really easygoing guy," he said. "I try not to get too serious. But once you're there you can't get too serious. It's working pretty good.
"I think there's two nerves, one where you can still enjoy it and one where you can't handle it."
What a difference a year makes. Huh now wears logos of companies in the U.S. in addition to his Korean partners. He has status to play at Riviera this week and committed so early he was featured in Korean print advertisements for the event that is a hit in the Korean community. People know him, too.
"I feel comfortable here," Huh said. "I feel I belong. I still have that nerve when I stand next to Tiger and Ernie (Els). Those are the guys I looked up to. That's just a thing I have to get over with.
"It's exciting every time I saw them on the range or putting green."
Folks now are recognizing Huh, whose name rhymes with duh. Many fans have the hang of it, but not everyone.
"Sometimes the guy who announces on the first tee screwed that one (up), but it's the moment I really enjoy `cause it's an interesting last name," Huh said. "I don't mind at all."
Huh played at Riviera in the offseason for the first time. In April, he'll play in his first Masters.
His rise to the top has been fast and furious. The 22-year-old who was born in Korea and moved from Chicago to Los Angeles to play golf wasn't even the best golfer on his high school team. After he didn't have enough core classes to use his scholarship to Cal State Northridge, he left for the Korean Tour. He played there three years, won once and met K.J. Choi.
"He's the one who's inspired the Koreans, especially me," Huh said of Choi. "Thanks to K.J., Kevin Na, Charlie Wi and those guys here before me. They're the ones who opened the path and inspire all of us players.
"Hopefully, I'll be one of them who can open the path for those who are coming here soon."
Choi, Na, Wi, D.H. Lee and Sang-Moon Bae were on hand Tuesday to congratulate Huh.
He'll play in today's pro-am along with two-time champ Phil Mickelson, Fred Couples and other big names. He's already carded a second-round 63 at the Sony Open this year but wants more.
"My expectations will be higher than last year," Huh said. "Still, I want to play consistently and in order to do that you have to drive well, manage your game well and have fun out there.
"That's big for me. That's why I enjoy the game."
Enjoying public speaking might not happen, but he's got the playing-well-under-pressure thing down.
Tiger Woods bypasses Riviera again for Arizona, Florida
Tiger Woods isn't playing in this week's Northern Trust Open, but he committed to three other tournaments as players settled in at Riviera Country Club for the week.
Woods committed to next week's World Golf Championships-Accenture Match Play Championship at Marana, Ariz., the Honda Classic at PGA National Champion Course and the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship at TPC Blue Monster at Doral in Miami. The latter two tournaments are in Florida, where Woods lives.
"I'm excited to be playing in the Honda Classic again," Woods said. "It's a really good tournament, and it does a lot for the community. I like the golf course, and I came pretty close last year.
"It's part of a busy stretch for me, and I want to continue playing well."
Woods hasn't played here since 2006, despite tournament organizers' attempts to lure him back to the event that gave him his first sponsor exemption as a 16-year-old amateur.
Woods is 0 for 11 at the Northern Trust Open, including two appearances as an amateur. It's the most times he's played an event without winning. He's played well here, but seemingly always had one bad round that made this title elusive for him.
He has four top-10 finishes here and never finished worse than a tie for 20 th. The last time he played seven years ago, he withdrew because he was sick.
Woods put the Honda Classic and Farmers Insurance Open back on his schedule but has yet to add the Northern Trust Open again.
Jerry West, the Northern Trust Open's excecutive director, has made it a priority to convince Woods to return to the event, but it hasn't happened yet despite his efforts. He even played in Woods' World Challenge pro-am this year via his role with the tournament.
West has known Woods for about two decades.
Even without Woods, the tournament has big names, including fan favorites Phil Mickelson and Fred Couples. The tournament also features three of last year's four major winners - Bubba Watson (Masters), Webb Simpson (U.S. Open) and Ernie Els (British Open).
ETC.
World No. 4 Brandt Snedeker withdrew from the Match Play Championship on Tuesday because of sore ribs that have been causing him discomfort despite his torrid stretch of golf. He won the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am on Sunday. ... Patrick Cantlay, the former UCLA golfer, finished tied for ninth last week at AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am but still had to use his sponsor's exemption to play the Northern Trust Open. Golfers who finish in the top-10 are automatically entered into the next week's event unless PGA Tour regulars account for all of the tournament's spots. That happened this week as the Northern Trust Open is one of the mostpopular events for the world's best players. It's disappointing only in that players are limited to seven sponsor's exemptions per year, and he's already using his fourth. Cantlay has conditional status on the Web.com Tour this year ... Eighteen of the top 30-ranked golfers in the world and 25 of the top 50 are in the event ... Fred Couples will make his 31 st start this week. He's scheduled to play twice on the PGA Tour this year, here and at the Masters. He has surpassed Gene Littler for most starts in tournament history. He's won twice and has a total of 14 top-10 finishes.
Source: http://www.dailybreeze.com/sports/ci_22578879/painter-golf-talking-good-game-tougher-than-playing?source=rss
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