By Kevin Rademeyer, Sports Journalist.
Photo Credit: Mateo Villalba/LIV Golf.
Under a blazing Australian sun at LIV Golf Adelaide, Anthony Kim stood on the 12th tee at The Grange Golf Club, five shots adrift and chasing two of the most formidable figures in modern golf. What followed felt less like a round of sport and more like a reckoning.
The first fist pump came after a curling birdie putt dropped on the par three 12th, known to fans as the Watering Hole. Another followed on the 13th. Then the 14th. Then the 15th. Each stroke of the putter landed like a thunderclap across Adelaide. Each roar from the gallery carried a note of disbelief.
By the time Kim reached the 17th, the comeback was no longer improbable. It was undeniable.
With a breathtaking nine under 63, the 40 year old American surged past Jon Rahm and Bryson DeChambeau, finishing at 23 under par to secure his first professional victory in 5,795 days. Nearly sixteen years had passed since he last lifted a trophy at the Shell Houston Open. In that span, his life had unravelled and been stitched back together.
“I do not really know what to say right now,” Kim admitted, his voice trembling as his wife Emily and young daughter Bella embraced him beside the 18th green. “It has been overwhelming. But I am never not going to fight for my family.”
For more than a decade, Kim had vanished from the sport and largely from public view. Once ranked as high as world number six and a member of the victorious United States team at the Ryder Cup, he seemed destined for sustained greatness. Instead came injuries, repeated surgeries and a private battle with addiction that pushed him to the brink.
He has spoken candidly about those lost years. There was rehabilitation. There was doubt. There were moments when golf felt irrelevant, even impossible. When he returned to competition in 2024 as a wildcard on the LIV circuit, the comeback was tentative. Over two seasons he failed to register a single league point. Relegation followed. His name slipped to 847th in the Official World Golf Ranking. At the start of this year he did not even hold a guaranteed place on a roster.
He fought back through the LIV Promotions event, earning his spot the hard way. A modest tie for 22nd in Riyadh hinted at progress. Few predicted what would unfold in Adelaide. Yet Kim insists he always believed. “Nobody else has to believe in me but me,” he said. “For anybody that is struggling, you can get through anything.”
The decisive stretch on Sunday will be replayed for years. Four consecutive birdies from the 12th to the 15th. Putts holed from 17 feet, 11 feet, 14 feet, then another from 17 feet. A nerveless five footer for par on the 16th to repel Rahm’s charge. A closing birdie on the 17th to seal it.
As Kim walked up the 18th, more than 115,000 spectators over four days had turned Adelaide into the most attended golf event in Australian history, according to state officials. They crowded around the final green, sensing they were witnessing something larger than a leaderboard shift. He tapped in for par. Arms raised. Putter aloft. Tears close to the surface.