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Talk in the build-up to the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am has not been about Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, or even Phil Mickelson teeing it up.
Instead, it has been about Ho-Sung Choi, a golfer from South Korea who, in 2018, became a social media sensation for his idiosyncratic follow through.
• WATCH: Ho-Sung Choi’s swing in slow motion
His action has been dubbed ‘The Fisherman Swing’ and has won him many fans on social media and elsewhere.
You can check out his swing here…
🚨NOT A DRILL🚨
— Skratch (@Skratch) January 14, 2019
Hosung Choi is playing Pebble Beach at this year's @ATTProAm. pic.twitter.com/zly9Bvrgc8
And here…
INJECT IT INTO OUR VEINS!!!!#StripeShow #TheLegendofHoSung pic.twitter.com/sjEEOAsBJw
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) January 17, 2019
He also has this little jig after holing some putts…
The legend of Hosung Choi grows with each putt 😂 pic.twitter.com/AbQEYrL0Iu
— Golfviral (@golfviral) December 24, 2018
Ho-Sung Choi was born on September 23, 1973, and, before the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, has never played in a tour event outwith Asia.
He started out on the Korean Tour and OneAsia Tour but, after winning the 2013 Enjoy Jakarta Indonesia PGA Championship – co-sanctioned by the OneAsia Tour and the Japan Golf Tour – he has played primarily on the Japan Golf Tour since.
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On November 24, 2018, Choi won the Casio World Open on the Japan Tour, which helped to propel him inside the world top 200 for the first time.
Shortly afterwards, a petition began circulating online for the 46-year-old to receive an invite to the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
We all know someone with a swing like Ho-sung Choi.
— AllAboutGolf (@golf4themasses) January 17, 2019
They're rarely as dialled in as him though 😅#golfswing pic.twitter.com/Dut5njtwfC
While that didn’t come to anything (at least, not yet), on January 14, 2019, it was announced that Choi had received an invite to play in the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.
“I never imagined this day would come,” Choi told South Korean news
outlets. “I took up golf at the age of 25, after a hard life.
“I’m fully aware that none of this would be possible without the love
and support of my fans. I will of course do my best wherever I go.”
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Not everyone was impressed with the merits of Choi’s invite to the event, though.
Rory McIlroy said: “I mean, technically his swing is good. If you watch it up until impact, he’s technically got a pretty good swing. He’s obviously a pretty good player.
“Whether that means he should be taking a spot away from a PGA Tour player at a PGA Tour event, I’m not so sure.”
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