The chopper helped Love flash a rare smile. Scott Halleran/Getty Images

As you peruse the current PGA Tour fraternity, the eyes easily fix upon the high-wattage names on the members list. Heaps of attention have raised the value of the Fab 5 firm of Woods, Singh, Mickelson, Els & Goosen -- and rightfully so. Although Woods is the CEO and largest shareholder, the other partners enjoy the excess spoils of international recognition and accomplishment as well.

That leaves us with a bevy of junior partners vying for board director chairs. Davis Love III, Jim Furyk, David Toms, Mike Weir, Fred Couples, Tom Lehman and Justin Leonard are multiple Tour winners with one major each, although Couples and Lehman are past their primes. Adam Scott is another notable, but he's awfully young to be a full partner.

The most intriguing and mystifying name is Davis Love III. The roman numerals immediately bestow an aristocratic association, one with entitlement, prestige, and nobility. His Tour record is both formidable and frustrating -- 18 wins, fourth in career winnings, 27 seconds, a 2-7 playoff record, two Players Championships and a PGA Championship acknowledge his playing prowess and exasperating close calls. DL3 is always a name to watch in any tournament, yet there's something warning you of impending frustration.

To wit, Davis is now the leader among active PGA Tour players in career second-place finishes. Greg Norman had 31 before aging into the Champions Tour.

Davis Love III could be a prime example on how tough it is to enact Tour domination. He enjoyed a monster year in 2003, winning four times and banking more than $6 million. Love's closing 64 in ridiculously sinful conditions at the Players was a round for the ages. However, his name doesn't get a sniff when players are mentioned for possible promotion into a Fab 5 corner office.

Here's a player possessing incredible length and a deft short game. His fluid swing launches shots far and deep. In fact, in his prime, he was Tiger Woods' equivalent, shrinking par 5s into mere driver-wedge dwarfs.

Love holds formidable records for the most consecutive years (10) and most total years (11) with at least $1 million in earnings. He owns the MCI Heritage Classic with five victories. This season, he has four top 10s including a T-2 at -- surprise -- the MCI Heritage.

So what is it about Love that confounds the golf fan? His record should produce viewer anticipation of impending awe. Yet he's the target of fan assaults with taunts of "soft," "pouting," and "weak" escaping from their sneering lips.

In a 2004 Golf Digest interview, Love responded to allegations of his "soft" nature on the course by stating, "Yeah, I hear it every once in a while. And I think it, too. I think it has more to do with closing things out when I'm coming down the stretch of a tournament instead of being mean. Is Nick Price mean? Was Jack Nicklaus mean? I don't think so. Focused, yeah, but I don't think you have to be like Ben Hogan was to win."

"Tom Kite used to ask me, 'Why don't you wave more to the crowd?' I think the reason is I just stay nervous out there. I can't get too excited. My friends tell me the same thing. They tell me I look the same when I'm fishing as when I'm playing golf. They tell me I don't look like I'm having any fun. But I am having fun. I'm just not good at screwing around. I'm not an entertaining kind of guy. If I have to walk down the fairway saying hello to everybody, well, I don't think that's me. I hope people understand that I'm working hard."

Is it possible to have fun while wearing a scowl?

Off the course, Love is a very likeable gent. He'll chat with fans, readily signs autographs, and is more than accessible to the media. A father would be ecstatic to have someone with Davis' attributes as a son-in-law. Problem is the majority of fans only see his grimaces on the course. Unfortunately, perception is everything, although it can draw unfair conclusions -- especially on a superficial level.