THE OPEN RELATED STORIES The Open Home Page The Open Scores Round 4: Padraig Harrington wins Open in playoff Round 4: Late bogeys cost Romero The Open Round 4: No final round charge from Tiger Woods Round 4: Richard Green equals course record Round 4: 18th at Carnoustie strikes again Round 3: Sergio Garcia in sight of first major title Round 3: Justin Rose boosted by round of 67 Round 3: Late problems cost Ian Poulter dear Round 3: Tiger Woods shoots 69 but still eight back Round 3: Chris DiMarco back in the mix after a 65 Round 3: Steve Stricker shoots course record Round 2: Sergio Garcia holds on to lead on Friday Round 2: Rory McIlroy claims Silver Medal Round 2: Garcia not bothered when he wins major Round 2: Phil Mickelson struggles and misses cut Round 2: Tiger Woods still in the hunt despite 74 Round 2: Weir jumps into contention with round of 68 Round 1: Sergio Garcia leads with opening 65 Round 1: David Howell happy with eventful 72 Round 1: KJ Choi happy despite late bogeys Round 1: Inspired Michael Campbell shoots 68 Round 1: Ruling overshadows Tiger's round Round 1: Last minute tip helps McGinley to a 67 Round 1: Amateur Rory McIlroy scores a 68 Top 20 favourites for the Open Tiger Woods targets third straight Open title Paul Lawrie returns to site of famous victory Colin Montgomerie backs European winner Draw for first & second rounds Seve Ballesteros retires from golf Jean Van de Velde suffering from unknown illness Wild weather day at Carnoustie Jim Furyk enjoys his low profile Phil Mickelson not worried about driving problems Peter Fowler aims to get career back on track Nick Faldo fears for "nice" Europeans No distractions for Tiger Woods Paul Lawrie still not getting credit for Open win Jose Maria Olazabal withdraws from the Open Rod Pampling seeks to change Carnoustie luck Sergio Garcia unhappy with Scottish weather Weather biggest factor in how Carnoustie will play Gary Player says some players take steriods Justin Rose seeks to break European drought Quotations about the Open Championship Course Guide: Carnoustie 2007 European Tour Schedule GREAT GIFTS FOR GOLFERS Golf Breaks to Portugal & Ireland Half Price Golf Vouchers InstructaCard - your portable pro! The Father & Son Golf Ch'ship Golf Insurance

KJ Choi happy despite late bogeys

Two late bogeys spoiled a fine Open first round for KJ Choi on Thursday but the South Korean was still happy to continue his rich vein of form.

The Texas-based 36-year-old surged two shots ahead of the field with four birdies in the first six holes at a Carnoustie course drenched by rain and looked set to hang on to at least a share of the lead coming down the tough closing stretch.

Bogeys at the 15th and 18th holes, though, dropped Choi a stroke behind clubhouse leader Michael Campbell of New Zealand, the 2005 U.S. Open champion, with a two-under-par 69.

After battling against cold and damp conditions, Choi was happy with his morning's work, despite his late glitches.

"I still have a good feeling about my round," Choi told a news conference. "I only really hit one bad shot and that came at the 15th, where I was bunkered.

"Yesterday I practised in the rain purposely, anticipating there was there was going to be more today, so I didn't feel too concerned and found my rhythm well."

Choi's caddie is the highly experienced 55-year-old Briton Andy Prodger, who was by Nick Faldo's side when the Englishman won the 1987 British Open and 1989 U.S. Masters.

The two are now communicating much better after two years together.

Prodger told Reuters: "KJ's English has come on leaps and bounds this last year and we can communicate well now. My Korean seems to have got worse, so it's a good job."

Prodger is also happy with his returns from Choi's fine recent run which has seen the player earn over $2 million from victories in the Memorial and AT and T National on the PGA Tour. Caddies generally take a 10 percent cut of prize money.

Choi said of his relationship with Prodger: "I've won a lot of tournaments with Andy now. He makes me very comfortable and helps me to really focus during my round. He's like a big brother."