Over a decade after he stepped aside from golf as he battled plenty of personal demons, Anthony Kim has won his first tournament nearly 16 years.
Kim, who competes in LIV Golf, managed to hold off the likes of Jon Rahm, Tyrrell Hatton and Bryson DeChambeau to win the event in Adelaide by three strokes.
His final round nine-under performance completed one of the most remarkable career comebacks the sport has ever seen.
Kim stopped playing golf in 2014 as he battled addition to drugs and alcohol. But on Sunday, he drained a putt Down Under to mark his first victory since the 2010 Shell Houston Open.
It was expected that Rahm and DeChambeau would fight for the win, only for the American star to card four bogeys in his first six holes.
That left the door open for Kim to storm his way to the top of the leaderboard.
Anthony Kim has won his first golf event in 16 years after previously spending a decade away
Kim took the victory at the LIV Golf Adelaide event in Australia, his first win since April 2010
After a decade away from the sport, Kim returned to golf in 2024 – playing as a reserve on the LIV circuit. At the end of last season, he lost his card.
Kim needed to battle through an international play-off to come back as a reserve before joining Dustin Johnson’s 4Aces team earlier this week.
The California native, who has maintained three years of sobriety, admitted he was feeling blessed just to be alive, let alone contending in golf tournaments.
‘It has been overwhelming,’ the father-of-one said. ‘But I’m never not going to fight for my family.
‘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.’
Kim produced his Sunday best to eclipse Rahm as other challengers came, then went.
‘I knew this was going to happen but for it actually happen is pretty insane,’ he said.
Kim had previously quit the sport in 2014 as he battled addiction to drugs and alcohol
Kim put up a nine-under-par final round to storm into a three-shot lead over Jon Rahm
‘I just want to thank all the people that have supported me … who, when I was not playing well and I was struggling on the verge of never coming back to LIV, always supported me.
‘Thank you to everyone that’s been in my corner. I’m going to keep doing it.’
Golf fans went wild for what was being praised as the ‘greatest comeback’ in the game.
‘Four Aces Anthony Kim is one of the greatest comeback stories in sports,’ posted the Barstool Sports account Pardon My Take.
‘Stepped away from golf in 2012 from an Achilles injury and personal reasons Relegated from LIV then earned his spot back in January. Gets his first win in over 15 years #golfguy.’
‘Anthony Kim makes 9 birdies for a final round 63 to win LIV Golf Adelaide by 3 shots over Jon Rahm. He didn’t play golf for 12 years. Was relegated. Re-qualified. Now he’s won. This is one of the greatest comeback stories in sporting history. Truly astonishing,’ another post read.
‘Where does Anthony Kim story rank in golfing moments?’ read another post. ‘It’s great – I may have it just behind Rory Grand Slam, Tiger 2019 Masters & Mickelson wins PGA right now without thinking too hard – thoughts?’
One fan posted, ‘I’m a PGA fan. I’ve never connected with the LIV product. But if anyone tries to downplay what Anthony Kim just did, shame on you. This is one of the greatest comebacks in the history of sports.’