Wind Keeps Kim Waiting, But He Doesn't Mind

SOUTHPORT, England, July 19 -- Anthony Kim is playing in his first British Open and "having a blast" with his first experience in links golf. He also experienced a 30-minute delay on the 10th green when the wind was so strong, his ball was blown three times from its original spot and a rules official had to be summoned.

"It felt like we went through a war," said Kim, 23, who shot 71 Saturday for a 7-over-par 217, five shots off Greg Norman's 54-hole lead. "The ball was blown seven feet back after I put it back down. So we just waited and wondered if there was any foul play. I [originally] marked it, and after putting it back down, as I was reading [the putt], the ball was blown about a foot back.

"So I kept waiting, and it blew another foot back. I called the rules official and he said when it stops, mark it, and we'll call a rover [roving rules official] over. So I marked it again and I put the ball behind my coin for the official to see and then it rolled five or six yards off the green, 15 yards total. The wind was blowing so hard, the official couldn't hear in his earpiece."

Kim was allowed to put his ball back where it started and he made a par at the 408-yard hole. The wait also backed up play on the back nine, with a number of twosomes having to wait at least 20 minutes on the 10th tee.

"I kept my head down and just kept plugging away," said Kim, winner of the AT&T National at Congressional two weeks ago. "My hat almost blew off about 10 times on the back. I actually like playing in this stuff. I grew up [in Los Angeles] playing where the conditions weren't the best and your lies weren't the greatest. This is awesome."

Ups and Downs

Ben Curtis made one of the biggest moves of the day up the leader board, and David Duval had the most precipitous plunge of the third round.

With two birdies and an eagle on his front-nine 31, Curtis, the 2003 British Open champion, came in with a 70-217 and is now in a four-way tie for fifth, five off the lead. His eagle came from the fairway at the 451-yard No. 3, when Curtis hit a 9-iron. "I heeled it a little bit," he said. "I thought it was going in the front right bunker. Luckily it held its line. When they started clapping, I thought maybe I carried the bunker. Then we walked 10 more yards and they went crazy."

Duval began badly, making a triple bogey at the opening hole despite a drive in the fairway. His second shot went dead right into an unplayable lie, and it just kept getting worse. He had five more bogeys and a double on his front-side 44, and finished with an 83 and 15-over 225, a day after he shot 69 to tie for fourth place, three shots off K.J. Choi's 36-hole lead.

"It's about as hard as I have ever played in," Duval said of the conditions. "I am extremely disappointed with my score. I can assure you very few people hit the ball better than I did today. I just got behind it and couldn't get any nice things to happen. But I don't walk away from today's round any less confident than yesterday's round. If anything I gained confidence with how I struck the ball and maintained my rhythm."

Lyle's Exit Criticized

Sandy Lyle's decision to walk off the course after 10 holes of the first round may affect his chances of becoming a Ryder Cup captain. A committee of players makes the final decision, and Lyle has been heavily criticized in the national media, as well as by some of his competitors.

Peter Dawson, chairman of the Royal & Ancient, the governing body for the British Open, clearly was not happy.

"He was obviously having a bad day, but in my view, a professional golfer should complete his round whenever possible," Dawson said. "It was disappointing. I wonder what he would have thought if the starter went home at lunchtime and could not register his score."

The Times of London reported Saturday that Lyle was planning to apologize to Dawson. His manager, Robert Duck, told the newspaper that Lyle "is sorry for the way he handled it."