Kuala Lumpur, February 10: American Anthony Kim is planning to become the king at this week's US$2 million Maybank Malaysian Open after rubbing shoulders with a real King on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old world number 11 was enthralled after enjoying the honour of playing alongside the King of Malaysia, Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin, in the pro-am but he made known his intentions of living up to his star billing in the US$2 million event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.

"It was a lot of fun," said Kim today. "I really didn't know I was going to be playing with the King and it was quite an honour. He was a really funny guy and it was a blast to go out there and play a round of golf with him. There was a good chance that he could have beaten me today so he obviously has a good golf game."

Kim started the season with a tied second finish at the US PGA Tour''s season-opener the Mercedes-Benz Championship in Hawaii in January but a sore shoulder prevented him from building on that strong start.

He liked what he saw at Saujana Golf and Country Club and while the renowned course is nicknamed the "Cobra" within the local fraternity, Kim was amused to encounter a group of monkeys roaming the golf course.

"I saw about 10 monkeys and I wanted to try and pat one of them but it showed me its teeth!" he said.

"It (the course) does suit my game. If I can make putts then I will have a lot of fun but at the same time there are a lot of those little palm trees that can come out and grab you."

Over the past year, Kim, whose parents are Koreans, has made it a point to travel to Asia where he has played in Korea and China. "I want to be a global player and it is important for me to go to different countries and experience new venues and the way that tournaments are set up so that I can go to a lot of different places and play well wherever I am in the world," said Kim.

"I think when I was nine or 10 years old, my mum said that she wanted me to go to Korea and have the kids there be able to relate to someone like me, whether they are in difficult situations in their life or not, so that they can see that it is definitely possible for them to live out their dreams. So for me, it is about giving back to the kids and golf has been such a tremendous asset for me and has allowed me to meet some of the great people that I have met."

Kim, who was part of the victorious United States Ryder Cup team where he defeated Sergio Garcia in the singles, rated Asian golf highly despite his limited experience of competing in the region.

"To be honest, I have played three events here in Asia and they have been top notch. It is just a matter of time before (more) Asian players start moving over to the US and getting used to our conditions," he said.

One of those young Asians could well be highly rated Malaysian Ben Leong, who broke through on the Asian Tour last year with victory at the Worldwide Selangor Masters.

Leong, 22, represents a new breed of Malaysians who speak of winning tournaments regularly but a bad back which forced him to miss last week's season-opening Asian Tour International has kept his optimism low. Even his father-cum-caddie N.C. Leong is nursing a knee injury.

"We're a crooked team," said Leong, who enjoyed a stellar amateur career which included being the first Malaysian to qualify for the US Amateur Championship.

"It's my fifth time playing in the Malaysian Open and I've never made the cut previously. My back is okay now but I've got to look after it. This is one of my biggest weeks of the year. It is our tournament and I definitely want to do well. I will play for a win but let's see what happens."

Other top names competing in the Maybank Malaysian Open include double winner Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand, Chinese star Liang Wen-chong, who was Asia's number one in 2007, Sweden's Peter Hedblom, winner at Saujana in 2007, Japanese star Shingo Katayama and English duo Simon Dyson and Nick Dougherty.

For more information, please call the Maybank Malaysian Open 2009 Media Centre at +603 78464801.