Anthony Kim has been away from professional golf for so long, the name might not ring any bells with a young audience. However, back in the noughties, the three-time PGA Tour winner and Ryder Cup star was some player. He showed so much promise, in fact, that he was tipped as the next Tiger Woods.
The man from California, now 37, clocked out back in 2012, without so much as a goodbye. He was hampered by a few injuries – and that was that. Ever since, rumors – including one where he’s about to surface on the LIV Golf tour – have been circulating as to whether he could make some kind of epic comeback, like a superhero in a movie. To date, though, it’s just that: speculation.
So, for now at least, all we can do is relive some of his greatest moments – and he left us with quite a few before he just upped and left.
Aside from his dismantling of Sergio Garcia at the 2008 Ryder Cup, which laid the foundations for a US victory at Valhalla, Kim registered a trio of wins on the PGA Tour and amassed a total of $12,206,409 in prize money in what was a fairly short period of time.
As well as finishing tied fifth at The Open in 2011, he put on quite a show at Augusta National. His best finish at The Masters was in 2010, when he came third, four back of eventual champion Phil Mickelson.
However, a year earlier, in what was his first Masters appearance, he set an unbelievable record that still stands to this dayTi. ed 20th doesn’t tell the full story of how he did that year. On Friday, he shot a 65, a round that contained a staggering 11 birdies – and this came after he opened his Masters account with a 75.
(Image credit: Getty Images)
“It feels like a 58 right now,” he said afterwards. “I mean, I just tried to stay steady. Even though I made a bogey on nine and a double on 10, and I three-putted early on hole number four, I just said, “Stay steady”. The putts kept following so I just kept walking them in and going to the next hole.”
Kim’s round was all the more impressive given that the scoring average for the second round was 74.84, the highest it would be all week. Just 17 players in the field of 96 broke par with just three going under 70. It wouldn’t be enough to challenge for a Green Jacket, but he did win a crystal vase for his efforts.
And those 11 birdies? They came at one, three, five, six, seven, eight, 12, 13, 14, 15 and 18, where he drained a 12-footer to beat Nick Price’s birdie record by one. It’s a shame about the bogeys, but…
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