What happened to the golfer who ‘disappeared’ for 12 years before making comeback
2008 was quite the year for Flo Rida as he topped the charts with his hit 'Low' but in the world of golf, exciting prospect Anthony Kim, had an equally stellar run.
Kim became the first American under the age of 25 since Tiger Woods to win two PGA Tour events in the same year. His second win came at the AT&T National, a tournament hosted by Woods, and saw him climb to 14th in the World Rankings.
He then followed that up by playing a key role in United States' 2008 Ryder Cup win, taking two-and-a-half points from four matches and scoring a win over the legendary Sergio Garcia.
Kim was ranked No.6 in the world at one stage, racking up £4,656,265 in earnings in 2008 after eight top ten finishes in PGA events.
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He also set a new record for 11 birdies inside a single round at Augusta National.
However, fast forward four years and disaster struck. Kim injured the Achilles tendon in his left leg and was on the sideline for a lengthy period.
In 2014, Golf Channel reported that he had stopped playing golf entirely, with other injuries taking their toll and leading to spinal fusion, shoulder surgeries and a hand operation.
Kim, who finished third in the 2010 Masters, did participate in select charity events but his professional career appeared to be behind him.
In the end, the Korean-American ended up being completely absent from the sport for a period of 12 years and struggled with drug and alcohol abuse.
He admit that he felt so low even during his highest career points that he thought about committing suicide for "almost two decades even when playing the PGA Tour".
After fading into the wilderness for 12 years, Kim made his return in 2024 as he signed for the breakaway LIV golf as a wildcard. Having returned at an event in Jeddah, he was rusty to begin with and finished 56th out of 57 players in the 2024 LIV Golf League seasonal rankings.
In fact, in his first two seasons with LIV, his best finish was a tie for 25th. However, 'AK' finally found his form and in February of this year, won the LIV Golf Adelaide event.
Nearly absent due to visa issues which saw him removed from his seat on the charter flight from Saudi Arabia, Kim won by three shots after finishing 9-under 63, having been behind both Bryson DeChambeau and Jon Rahm.
It was his first professional win since 2010 and former LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman called it the "greatest comeback golf has seen".
In a revealing interview, Kim told LIV that he had been surrounded by "snakes" in the early part of his career.
"I'm not going to lie, I was around some bad people," he stated.
"People that took advantage of me. Scam artists. And when you're 24 or 25, even 30 years old, you don't realise the snakes that are living under your roof."
Kim also admitted that he "had some very dark moments" and felt "very alone". However, his wife Emily and daughter Bella helped him overcome his struggles and he has sober for three years.
When he sunk the winning putt in February, Kim fist pumped the air and later called it the "best moment of my life so far". He also said that his daughter running on the green to "see that her dad isn’t a loser" was one of "the most special moments of my life".
Now completely sober, he was sprayed with carbonated water instead of champagne. Active on social media, Kim's bio on X says that he is a "recovering addict" and he regularly ends his posts with the phrase "SOBER IS DOPE".
He hasn't been able to replicate his heroics in recent tournaments and did not qualify for this year's Masters but most importantly, he has found joy back playing golf again.
Topics: Golf
Josh Lawless