With a mixture of sadness and celebration, K.J. Choi rolled in a 2-foot par putt on the infamous island green on the 17th hole at the TPC Sawgrass to claim the biggest win of his career.

The sadness came from watching David Toms, who only moments earlier had hit two of his best shots of the week to make birdie on the 18th hole and force a playoff, miss a 3½-foot par putt to effectively lose on the first extra hole.

There was so much to celebrate, however.

The Players Championship is the biggest event on the strongest tour in golf, and Choi had to wipe a few tears away when he won on Sunday evening. Winning comes with a check for $1.71 million from the largest purse in tournament golf. Choi also earned a five-year exemption on the PGA Tour, and three-year exemptions to the Masters and US Open.

But perhaps the most meaningful was the trophy - not the look of it or even the value of the crystal, but the name.

Choi is the Players’ champion.

Despite coming to America more than a decade ago, facing a language barrier and uncertain whether his game would be good enough to compete against the best, Choi has become a favorite among his peers.

He was paired with Jack Nicklaus early in his PGA Tour career, and the Golden Bear took to him even before Choi won at the Memorial in 2007 and talked about learning golf by reading a book about Nicklaus.

Fans reached out to touch Choi on his way to the tee, and he smiled and slapped their hands.

Choi did everything The Players Championship demands out of its winner. He never got flustered, even as he was coming down the stretch of perhaps the most dynamic finish in golf. He played 27 holes on Sunday, having to start on the 11th hole in the morning to finish the rain-delayed third round, and thus did something no other winner at Sawgrass had done before.