Anthony Kim completed an amazing comeback from alcohol and drug addiction that kept him out of the game for 12-and-a-half years to see off superstars Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambevau and win LIV Adelaide in incredible fashion.
The former US Ryder Cup star (40) closed with a blistering nine-under 63 to win by three strokes from Rahm and by six from DeChambeau, Tyrrell Hatton and Peter Uihlein on 23-under par at The Grange Golf Club to take home the $4million winner’s cheque.
“I'm very overwhelmed with this feeling right now,” said Kim, who began the week working out visa issues to get into Australia, then officially signed with 4Aces GC just before the tournament started.
“But my plan is to keep getting better and start winning some more trophies.”
Kim’s comeback and his first win for nearly 16 years is a remarkable tale and a welcome positive storyline for LIV Golf, which this year lost high-profile figures Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed.
Asked where he found the strength to believe he could come from five shots behind overnight leaders Rahm and DeChambeau to claim a fairytale victory, he said, “my family.”
“I don't really know what to say right now,” Kim said after his first win since the 2010 Shell Houston Open.
“It's been overwhelming. But I'm never not going to fight for my family.
“God gave me a talent. I was able to produce some good golf today. I knew it was coming.
"Nobody else has to believe in me but me, and for anybody that's struggling, you can get through anything.
“I don't really know how to put it into. words. I knew this was going to happen, but for it actually happen is pretty insane.
“I just want to thank all the people that have supported me, including you, who, when I was not playing well and I was struggling on the verge of never coming back to LIV, always supported me.
“Thank you to everyone that's been in my corner. I'm going to keep doing it.”
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Kim won three times on the PGA Tour, starring in the USA’s 2008 Ryder Cup win over Europe at Valhalla before picking up a thumb injury in 2010.
He had surgery on an Achilles tendon in his left leg in 2012 and disappeared from view for 12 years before dramatically joining the LIV Golf League as a wildcard in February 2024.
He finished 56th out of 57 players in his first season, and after finishing 55th last year, he retained status at the Promotions Event in January before being picked up by the 4Aces team following Reed’s decision not to renew his LIV contract.
Last year, he revealed he’d been sober for two years after struggling for years with alcohol and drug abuse.
He told Golf Digest that “in rehab I found faith, self-love and respect and purpose” crediting his wife Emily and daughter Bella with helping him recover.
He went into last night’s final round five shots behind Rahm and DeChambeau but went on to win with ease.
He was a shot behind Rahm after turning in four under to the Spaniard’s even par as DeChambeau limped through the turn in four over.
A birdie at the water-hole 12th sent fans wild as he tied for the lead and unleashed a massive fist pump before going on to birdie the 13th, 14th, 15th and 17th and eventually win by three, shooting 63 to Rahm’s 71 and DeChambeau’s 74.
“I'm too old to be reacting like that because I think I pulled something in my hip,” Kim joked of his reaction at the 12th.
“But I will say that that was all the lows that I went through in my life that I got to dig out of.
“Every putt that went in, I felt the struggle, and I was overcoming it. It was therapeutic out there to fight through it and come out on top.”
Rahm said: “In a weird way, as a competitor, I probably shouldn’t say this, but that was a joy to watch.
“To see that image on 18 of him hugging his wife and daughter, any man with a soul is going to have a soft spot for that. I was almost tearing up.”
The Ripper GC line-up of Cameron Smith, Herbert, Marc Leishman and Elvis Smylie won the team title by two shots from Rahm’s Legion XIII.
Graeme McDowell was tied 14th on 13 under after a 68, while Tom McKibbin was joint 44th on four under after a 73.
Kim’s rivals were also happy to see him win.
“It's so good,” Smith said. “If it wasn't one of us this week, to have him win here in Adelaide at our premier event is pretty cool.
“I'm so happy for him. He's worked hard. I actually played with Anthony his first round back in Saudi a few years ago, and it was scrappy to say the least, and I was very sceptical at the start.
“But what he's been able to do over the past couple of seasons and dig deep and grind out and then do what he did today is pretty special. Congrats to him. I'm so happy for him.”
Smith’s Ripper GC teammate Marc Leishman added, “As a dad, it's pretty amazing what he's done for his daughter.
“I think we all as dads, you play for your family and you play for your wife and your kids and all that, and your extended family.
“But for him to be able to change his life through golf in that way, it shows what a good person he is and what a strong person he is, what golf can do for your life.
“I don't know, it's pretty touching, actually, how good a story this is. I hope that people realise how it's a fairytale, it really is. Not just golf but life.
“You see his wife and his daughter run out on the green, and that's as good as it gets. I couldn't be happier for AK.”
Article Link: Anthony Kim completes fairytale comeback with three-shot win at LIV Adelaide - News - Irish Golf Desk