Anthony Kim was not aware of some of the biggest happenings in golf over the last few years. The golfer only recently returned to the sport after a decade-long absence and he recently claimed that he wasn’t in tune with the state of things while he was away.
Kim revealed that he was completely unaware that his LIV Golf tourmate Brooks Koepka had won two consecutive Majors. Koepka had a terrific run, winning the US Open in both 2017 and 2018, and following that by winning the PGA Championship in both 2018 and 2019.
NUCLR GOLF posted on X (formerly Twitter):
“Anthony Kim: “I just found out from DJ yesterday, playing a practice round with him yesterday that Brooks won back to back majors.”
Perhaps an even bigger story that Kim seemingly missed out on was Tiger Woods’ improbable and totally unexpected 2019 Masters victory. The legendary golfer battled age and poor health to a stunning victory five years ago, and Kim stated that he was only vaguely aware that it had even happened.
Woods otherwise hadn’t won a Major since the 2008 US Open. It’s difficult to win a Major championship 11 years after your last victory. Woods had plenty of Major wins (14 of them) in his prime, but the 2019 one was different and marked a huge story for the sport.
The sport of golf isn’t as mainstream as some other ones, but Woods’ victory and Koepka’s impressive streak transcended the sport and became common knowledge to a lot of sports fans across the globe.
Anthony Kim speaks out on extended golf absence
Anthony Kim disappeared from golf almost without a trace. After a promising start to his PGA Tour career, injuries sapped him and he walked away from professional golf. Kim was seen only sparingly before coming back to LIV this year.
Kim said of his lengthy disappearance via CNN:
“I’m not going to lie, I was around some bad people. People that took advantage of me. Scam artists. And when you’re 24 or 25, even 30 years old, you don’t realize the snakes that are living under your roof.”
He also said that he has an up-and-down relationship with the sport as a whole:
“Golf is important to me and not important to me at the same time. I’ve had some very dark moments. I’ve had some very low moments. I’ve felt very alone, even when there’s a million people around. I needed to get my mind straight and figure out what my purpose was on this planet.”
Regardless of where Kim went or what he did, he’s back now and he will be competing in his own events rather than learning later who won.