PERTH(AFP): Colombia's Camilo Villegas hopes to step into Tiger Woods' shoes as the world's leading golf star.
The 27-year-old achieved his aim of winning in the United States in style at the end of 2008, triumphing at both the Tour Championship and BMW Championship.
That helped him rapidly rise to ninth in the world rankings and offered evidence he might be a serious contender to the injured Woods, who is close to returning from major knee surgery.
Speaking here ahead of this week's Johnnie Walker Classic, Villegas said he was content with the steady improvement in his game in recent years, believing it had him perfectly placed for longevity in the sport.
"It's a process and you've got to take it one step at a time," he said, when asked if he could challenge for Woods' top spot.
"Some guys get on tour and win right away and you never hear their name again. I believe I have done everything in a good pace, I try to improve every year. It was very gratifying to see the two wins happening at the end of the year to position myself better in the world rankings and to increase the challenges ahead of me."
Villegas said he was looking forward to this year's majors, where he will seek the next step in his evolution as a player, having made the top 10 at the US Open and US PGA.
"Majors are the one that really create history and we always look forward to them," he said.
"Last year, I had a good year in majors. I didn't play very good at Augusta but then I had a couple of top-10s ... I'm looking forward to the majors this year."
Villegas has also identified qualifying for the international team for October's Presidents Cup, under team captain and Johnnie Walker rival Greg Norman, as a top goal for this year.
"Presidents Cup is one of the goals of the year and with a great finish last year, I put myself in a good position," he said. "I would love to have Greg as a captain. Trust me, I'll be working hard to be part of the team."
Norman said Villegas and America's Anthony Kim, who is also playing here, were at the forefront of the push towards Woods.
"I think these two guys have got the opportunity to take the bull by the horns and not get intimidated by anybody, any golf shot or any tournament," he enthused.
"They have got the capabilities to win and they have proven that and they have just got to keep taking it fully and I think both of them have the confidence.
"I think they have had a tremendous opportunity since Tiger has been off the scene for nearly 12 months to give themselves the confidence to say 'OK, I can go out there and do this.'"
(By Scott Coghlan)
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