European Tour

Kim eyes first European Tour title

ESPN staff

April 20, 2010 « Rampage accuses Evans of having glass jaw in Twitter row | ESPN FA Cup Promo »

Antony Kim returns to the Ballentine's Championship for a third time © Getty Images

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Ryder Cup star Anthony Kim is eyeing up his first win outside of the United States this week as he tees it up at the Ballantine's Championship in Korea.

The world No. 10 has been in great form of late, recently securing his third career title with a win at the Shell Houston Open and earning a third-place finish at the Masters with a terrific closing-round 65.

Kim finished 38th in The Race to Dubai last year but, despite spending the majority of his time playing on the PGA Tour, is adamant he wants to qualify for a place at the European Tour's season-ending Dubai World Championship.

"I signed up for The European Tour again this year, and it wasn't a tough decision," Kim told reporters at Jeju Island, the venue for this week's event.

"I want to play all over the world, and I think it's important for young players like myself and others to grow the game wherever we can.

"I'm going to do my best to qualify for The Race to Dubai. I'm committed to playing both tours equally."

Kim made his debut in the Ballantine's Championship in 2008, finishing in a tie for fifth, and the 24-year-old American believes his new-found level of maturity is the reason for his upturn in form.

"I've changed quite a bit, both as a person and as a golfer," said Kim, who was criticised early in his career for his lifestyle away from the course.

"I can tell you I'm having a lot more fun than I was when I was a couple years ago. It's a lot easier for me to come to a tournament and enjoy being out there, enjoy the fans, enjoy the support.

"So I am a much different player. I don't know physically if I'm very different, but because I'm more patient, and I've had more life experiences, I'm realising how lucky I am to be playing golf for a living and enjoying these moments.

"I've been scoring well and I've been playing pretty good golf. I'm pretty happy about how I'm playing in general, but mostly about how I'm chipping and putting. So if I can keep that up, I should be in good shape."