Viral sensation Ho Sung Choi takes his act to Pebble Beach

Ho Sung Choi, the 45-year-old Korean pro who’s become an Internet sensation because of his wild, unorthodox swing, made his PGA Tour debut on Thursday at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

The top of the leaderboard after the first round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am is crowded with star players. All the way down in 111th place, however, is the player who got most of the attention on Thursday.

Ho Sung Choi, the 45-year-old Korean pro known for his rather unorthodox swing, shot 72 on the Monterey Peninsula course in his PGA Tour debut.

Choi, playing the event on a sponsor’s exemption, began his round four-over thru his first 10 holes before closing with three birdies to get back to one-over for the tournament.

Choi has been a professional golfer for nearly 20 years, but it was only in June that word began to spread on social media about the player with the wild swing who was somehow in contention at the Korean Open.

In January came news that he was finally coming to the United States to play Pebble Beach.

Not everyone was excited about seeing Choi’s swing for themselves. Rory McIlroy, in particular, criticized the decision to take away a spot in the field from another, more deserving player.

Others, like Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, hoped to be paired with the Korean (Rodgers got his wish). But despite Choi’s less-than-textbook swing, he’s somehow made it work. He’s won twice on the Japan Tour, most recently last November.

He also has two wins in his native Korea and is now ranked inside the top 200 in the world.

Choi’s swing is known as the “fisherman swing” in Korea. He completes his follow-through off balance, with his right foot coming off the ground and falling away to the side.

While it might be unseemly, especially compared to the fluid swings normally seen on the PGA Tour, Choi believes it works for him.

He didn’t take up golf until the age of 26 when he got a job at a country club near Seoul. He worked several jobs before his pro career, including as a fisherman. While working in a tuna factory he lost part of his right thumb in a chainsaw accident.

Because of his late introduction to the game and limited opportunities, he admits he was forced to learn on his own.

“In the beginning, I actually had a wilder swing,” Choi said earlier this week, rising from the podium to demonstrate his swing for the gathered reporters. “And without being able to see my swing on camera, I had to use the mirror and kind of improved a little better by bit.”

“I personally love my swing. I didn’t start golf until I was in my late 20s, so technically I didn’t take any lessons growing up,” he said.

While Choi got the attention, the players who are used to having the spotlight on the PGA Tour started strong on Thursday.

Phil Mickelson, four-time champion of this event, hit every fairway in regulation for the first time in 21 years and is a shot behind leaders Brian Gay and Scott Langley at 6-under.

Jason Day is also a shot out of the lead, while two-time champion Dustin Johnson, winner last week in Saudi Arabia, is at five-under along with 2017 winner Jordan Spieth.

Choi doesn’t have anywhere near the pedigree of those players, but at least for one week he gets to show that not every swing is made the same at one of golf’s most iconic venues.