From a Correspondent
Miami: Wearing a pink polo shirt with “Girl Dad” inscribed above the left pocket, Anthony Kim met the media Thursday on the eve of LIV Golf Miami.
It was his first full-fledged press conference since returning to professional golf after a 12-year retirement.
During the 30-minute session, he was engaging. He was thoughtful, certainly introspective. He was even funny at times.
More to the point, he was honest and open. He did not hide from his past, nor did he seek to revise a history that’s had its dark moments – mentally, emotionally and physically, with seven surgeries – and includes a life-threatening low point.
“When doctors are telling you that you may not have much time left, that’s a pretty rude awakening,” he said.
Some of the specifics Kim is keeping for a tell-all documentary that should make for fascinating viewing.
Even so, he offered plenty of insight into his life as golf’s former next-big-thing who essentially disappeared for more than a decade and is now embarking on the second phase of his career as an independent wild card on LIV Golf.
He makes his third start since joining the league on the Blue Monster at Trump National Doral.
New perspective
While Kim wants to perform well in hopes of earning a spot on a team roster in 2025, his self-worth is no longer tied to his performance on the golf course.
He calls his ability to separate his leaderboard results from his life results as a “superpower” and gives credit to his two-year-old daughter Isabella.
“Whether I make a 15 or whether I make a 3, my daughter is still going to want to eat strawberry ice cream, and I’m going to do that with her,” he said. “That’s the most fun part of my day.”
If there was a central theme to his press conference, it was indeed focused on the youngest person in the media centre.
Isabella was off to the side with her mother and Kim’s wife, Emily. He mentioned the little one more than a half-dozen times, crediting her birth and the opportunity and responsibility of becoming a father as the most important and positive development of his life.
“When she was born, she came a few months early and the fight that she went through was hard to watch,” Kim said.
“In that moment, I realised that I had to change my life and the things that I’m doing if I’m going to be able to support her, not financially but emotionally and just be there for her.”
No-golf zone
As much as Kim disappeared from golf, the sport disappeared on his radar, too, after 2012 when he made his last start before retiring.
He said during the ensuing years that he rarely watched tournaments and was uninterested in results.
Kim only found out Wednesday while talking to Dustin Johnson that Brooks Koepka had successfully defended both the US Open (in 2018) and PGA Championship (in 2019).
He vaguely heard that Tiger Woods won the Masters in 2019.
“Going through some of the things I’ve gone through in my life,” Kim said, “I wasn’t focused on golf.”
When LIV Golf first began taking shape, Kim said he was contacted through intermediaries about his interest but was in no place to pursue any offer.
However, his wife was interested in playing, so he joined her, driving the golf cart, and selecting the music between shots.
They played nine holes as often as five days a week. Using clubs outfitted with her pink grips, he started to think about his return. Less than a year ago, he played his first full round.
But black clouds don’t easily evaporate.
The next day while out on the course, he tried to jump a creek. “Being 38 years old, I didn’t make it,” he said. His broken ankle kept him in a cast for four months.
Opening the door
But the connection with LIV Golf remained, and he signed the week before last month’s event in Jeddah.
It’s been a learning process ever since. He was not familiar with the newest technology, relying on Trackman to tell him how far his ball carries and how far it ends up going but ignoring the other amounts of data it spits out.
He doesn’t yet have structure with his practices, but knows he hits it longer. There also have been plenty of rules adjustments since 2008. Johnson, just a year older than Kim, has helped fill in the blanks.
“I actually learned a new rule today that you can take practice swings out of the hazard from DJ, and you can remove loose impediments from bunkers,” Kim said.
“I know I should have done that in Saudi because I was in every bunker there was, but I didn’t. So, I’m learning as I go.”
Each time out is an opportunity to improve. He shot a 5-under 65 in the final round at LIV Golf Hong Kong, and he led the field that week in putting – much-welcomed signs of improvement.
He knows his story is a powerful one, and when his documentary comes out, he hopes it will serve as an inspiration to others who may face similar struggles. But he needs to be relevant on the leaderboard.
“The better I play,” he said, “the louder my voice gets.”
Part of his identity back in the day were the gaudy belt buckles he used to wear.
Kim jokes that a 2.0 version is on the way. Whatever form that takes, it’s evident that he remains one of golf’s most charismatic players. It’s a different charisma, though.
Once flashy, once a swashbuckler, once demanding your attention with each tee time, Kim is older, wiser, humbled. Grateful for this second chance, and a family – especially young Isabella – that gives him a purpose.
“Being a father is the greatest gift that I’ve ever received,” he said. “I’m not going to let her down.” (courtesy livgolf.com)
Also read: Anthony Kim’s surprise return intrigues fellow LIV Golf members
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