On April 04, 2010, 25-year-old Anthony Kim won his last professional title at the Shell Houston Open. It took him some 16 years, battling alcohol addiction, fighting suicidal thoughts, and surviving through it all, to win again. In between, he was absent from the pro golf scene for a whopping 12 years. The miraculous comeback happened at LIV Golf Adelaide, where approximately 40,000 people witnessed this, including pros who just cannot get enough of it.

Lee Westwood, for one, said, “I love watching Anthony Kim play golf! @livgolf_league.”

That’s a sentiment most would agree with, considering how sensational Sunday was. Kim shot 5-under on the first two days, then 4-under on Saturday. Heading into the final round, he was in third place, five shots behind Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau. As per DataGolf, he had the slimmest chance of winning against them (0.3%), and LIV’s TV analysts put it even lower, 0.1%. Kim seized it anyway.

After the win, LIV Golf pros, including DeChambeau, Rahm, and Sergio Garcia, gathered around Kim to congratulate him. Garcia and Kim’s rivalry dates back to 2008, when an upstart Kim took the Spanish veteran head-on at the Ryder Cup and bested him 5 and 4.

DeChambeau even stood in line to ask for Kim’s autograph post-round. Hugging the 40-year-old, DeChambeau said, “What a f***ing story, great job.” Notably, both Rahm and DeChambeau showed support to Kim after the third round as well.

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Even the PGA Tour fraternity, despite the never-ending friction between the two leagues, congratulated Kim.

Chris Gotterup, who is currently playing at the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am, wrote on X, “AK!!” He was a 10-year-old aspiring golfer when Anthony Kim netted his third and last PGA Tour victory in 2010.

Gotterup has an 11.21 AM [ET] tee time on Sunday, and LIV Golf Adelaide ended around 1.30 AM. The timing of his tweet clearly reveals Gotterup was watching the final round live despite having a final round of his own lined up only a few hours later. And why wouldn’t he?

Anthony Kim made a birdie on the 4th, then another on the 5th. Two more birdies on the 7th and 9th, and he had a front-nine 32. By the 12th, Kim tied Rahm for the lead, and after a greenside bunker save on the 13th, he took the outright lead for the first time in the entire tournament.

He birdied the 14th, then the 15th, leading by three with three holes still left to play. Rahm piled on pressure with a birdie on the 16th, but Kim drained a 5-footer for par, holding a two-shot edge with two to play. Then, poured in another birdie on the 17th for good measure. Facing a two-foot par putt on the 18th, Kim rallied the crowd to make more noise before tapping in his bogey-free 63. Rahm finished at solo second, and DeChambeau settled for a T3.

Gotterup wasn’t the only pro with his eyes glued to the screen. 2025 Ryder Cup winning captain Luke Donald commented, “Way to go AK!… We all fail at times. Not everyone has the courage to come back, face it, and rebuild. That takes real strength. Congrats, AK.” 

Former PGA Tour pro turned broadcaster Colt Knost wrote, “Congrats to @AnthonyKim_Golf on an incredible win!!! Not sure who will play you in the movie, but it will be a good one!”

Knost has been very vocal about his criticism of LIV, especially the Saudi-backed league’s dwindling TV ratings. However, Kim’s comeback transcended that PGA Tour and LIV Golf divide.

Following the win, Byeong Hun An (T24), who recently joined LIV Golf’s Korean GC, commented, “What a comeback story by AK…unbelievable.” 

Graeme McDowell wrote, “If you can’t get behind this comeback, then you don’t understand the rollercoaster of life. Happy for this guy. Talk about digging it out of the dirt. Resilience personified.” 

Ian Poulter shared on his Instagram story, “This will be the greatest comeback in golfing history. Incredible @anthonykimofficial what a final round. Well done 👏.”

Kim led the field in reaching Greens in Regulation at 83.33% (60 of 72) and made the fewest bogeys (3) of the week. That steady and stellar performance landed him his first professional victory in 5,795 days. Now, he’s projected to climb the Official World Golf Rankings (OWGR) to as high as 200th by earning almost 23 points for his win. It will be his highest ranking since July 2012. He is currently ranked 847th in the world.

This is, undeniably, a great week for LIV as well. After losing Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed, this is the biggest news coming out of the rebel league. And by its nature, it is here to stay.

Meanwhile, post-win, an elated Kim said, “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.”

But his journey to this point has been extraordinary.

Anthony Kim has fought some demons to reach here, and he refuses to go back there

“My goals are the same as they were when I first joined LIV. It’s to get one per cent better every day, stay sober, enjoy time with my family – and whatever happens, happens, because all I can do is try my best,” said Anthony Kim post Thursday round at LIV Golf Adelaide.

Kim ghosted golf and the public eye for over a decade, wrestling with surgeries and addiction, before his wildcard LIV revival in 2024. Two seasons yielded zero standings points. He was relegated last year. For the most part, it seemed like a fresh ending to his career and future in golf. But he wasn’t done despite battling a blood clot and heart attack scares.

Anthony Kim was relegated from the PIF-funded league last year. However, last month, he finished third in the LIV Promotions Event to earn his way back into the circuit.

Last week in Riyadh, he logged his best at LIV with a T22. Before teeing it up at Adelaide, he joined his first LIV team with Dustin Johnson’s 4Aces. And an even bigger win? Six days from now, on February 20, Kim will celebrate three years sober. And he really doesn’t want to go back there.

“But I’m playing smarter. I’m staying more patient. I really want nothing to do with that 20-something-year-old kid. I want to be right where I am. I’m very blessed to have an amazing family and be alive. This is awesome,” Kim stated.