Anthony Kim struggles with last-place finish in LIV Golf debut

Unless you had zero expectations for Anthony Kim’s return to professional golf, your expectations were too high.

After three wins on the PGA Tour and two appearances for Team USA in the Ryder Cup and President Cup (5-2-1 overall), Kim was tabbed as golf’s next young talent in the late 2000s. Surgery to his Achilles in 2012 – and an insurance policy rumored in the $10 million range – kept Kim away from the professional game for the last 12 years before the 38-year-old joined the LIV Golf League for the 2024 season as a wild card player.

The universally loved fan-favorite started the week with a puzzling “Hi haters” hype video that fell as flat as his performance, both of which shocked fans given how high-energy Kim used to be. It’s far too early to make sweeping judgements, but if the first three rounds in Saudi Arabia are any indication of what’s to come, the former rising star may have burned out.

By any standard, no matter how low the bar was, Kim struggled in his debut at LIV Golf Jeddah with a dead-last finish at 16 over, more than 10 shots behind the penultimate player on the leaderboard at Royal Greens Golf and Country Club.

“Obviously it was a rough week. I’m excited to be playing professional golf again. I feel very blessed that I have this opportunity,” Kim said of his debut. “I’ve got a lot to work on, but I had a lot of good things go my way this week. So I’m looking forward to building on that and being in contention at some point this year.

“I’m definitely hitting the ball well. I’m doing a lot of things well. I know the scores don’t reflect that. It’s disappointing to score that way. But at the same time, I know I have a lot to build on, and I’m just going to keep doing what I’m doing.”

Here’s a look at AK’s return to professional golf by the numbers.