Anthony Kim has remained an enigmatic figure for the past decade. The rising star vanished from the greens at 26 after withdrawing from the 2012 Wells Fargo Championship. Three years later, and to date, his only full-length interview, Kim refused to say anything about his comeback.
While Greg Norman has perhaps done the unthinkable by signing Kim for around $8 million, much about his life remains hidden. Kim was dating Lisa Pruett at the height of his PGA Tour career. Life has, however, taken a different turn since then for the 38-year-old. Now married to Emily, Kim is a proud ‘girl dad’.
Is Kim’s family with him in Jeddah?
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Anthony Kim spoke about his family in the promotional video. His wife, Emily, and daughter were present with the comeback hero at the Royal Greens Golf and Country Club. Kim was also sporting a white tee with ‘Girl Dad’ written on the chest.
I’m excited to see what AK brings to the course but I think I’m mostly excited to see things like this video.
AK has certainly had some real struggles over the past decade, and now hes gearing up to compete, surrounded by his family, doing what he loves.
He’s already won. pic.twitter.com/9eVQeMOAzl
— LIV Golf Updates (@LIVGolfUpdates) March 1, 2024
In his first interview, a walk-on-talk of sorts, in more than eight years, Kim said he was glad to be on the greens with his family. Thanking LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman, the 38-year-old said, “I’m excited to be out here with my daughter and my family and just enjoy the experience that LIV is providing.”
Kim, maintaining the characteristic silence that defined him in the last 12 years, didn’t divulge any more details. When he split with his former girlfriend and got married to Emily is not known. He said he would offer more details when the time was right. Currently, golf is his only focus.
"I've missed the competitive part of the game" 💬#LIVGolf @anthonykim_golf pic.twitter.com/gzr05OdyMn
— LIV Golf (@livgolf_league) February 28, 2024
We got a glimpse of why he withdrew from golf in the 2015 interview: he had at least six to seven surgeries that almost rendered him unable to return to the greens. But why now, and how much was he in touch with golf, remains unclear. Interestingly, Kim also maintained that his return was long-awaited.
What do we know about Anthony Kim’s return?
Kim’s name was on the initial list of players contacted by LIV Golf around 2019. In 2021, his long-time swing coach, Adam Schriber, posted a photo with the star, captioning, “2021 is going to be special.” Multiple red herrings and rumored returns later, the 38-year-old will tee up at LIV Golf Jeddah on Friday.
The former PGA Tour Pro will play as a wildcard entrant into the 2024 season, along with Hudson Swafford. The 38-year-old golfer has 11 events in the calendar year he can tee up at. It is not clear how the two wildcard entrants will fit into the season-ending Team championship in October.
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Read More: Who Is Anthony Kim’s Caddie? Meet Ryan Todey, His Longtime Friend Turned Bagman
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