Anthony Kim, who chose LIV Golf over PGA Tour for long-awaited return, finishes last in first event

Anthony Kim put together his best round on the course since returning to professional golf this weekend, but he still finished dead last at his first LIV Golf event. 

Kim finished 16-over par in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, over the weekend, which was 32 strokes behind event winner Joaquin Niemann. 

Kim, a former prodigy on the PGA Tour who disappeared from the game for more than a decade, posted a 4-over round on Sunday, which was better than the 7-over rounds he posted on Friday and Saturday. He also finished even-par in his final 14 holes on Sunday, which some may view as good progress.

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Anthony Kim waits to play his tee shot on the 16th hole during day 2 of the LIV Golf Invitational - Jeddah at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia, on March 2, 2024. (Francois Nel/Getty Images)

Others, however, may say Kim’s time in professional golf has come and gone. 

But in his first tournament action in quite some time, Kim took his brutal start in LIV Golf in stride. 

"Obviously, it was a rough week," Kim said, per Yahoo Sports. "I’m excited to be playing professional golf again, and I feel pretty blessed I have this opportunity."

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Kim’s return to professional golf made waves when ESPN initially reported that he would be returning. However, some took exception to him choosing LIV Golf over the PGA Tour, the latter of which he was a fan-favorite.

Kim had a four-season run on the PGA Tour, where he was almost always near the top of the leaderboard. He finished third in the 2010 Masters and tied for fifth at The Open Championship the following year. 

Anthony Kim plays a tee shot on the 16th tee during day 2 of the LIV Golf Invitational - Jeddah at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia, on March 2, 2024. (Francois Nel/Getty Images)

But the most memorable was his 2008 Ryder Cup performance as a rookie on the team, starting off the tournament with a dominant 5&4 match-play victory over Spain’s Sergio Garcia. The United States ended up defeating the Europeans in the end.

Kim has three PGA Tour victories under his belt, but injuries eventually shut him down from the game in 2012. 

It’s been a while since the days when Kim was once ranked No. 6 in the world on the links, but he’s using this opportunity with LIV, where he’s a wild card who will play as an individual instead of a team for the rest of the season, to make his comeback. 

"I’m definitely hitting the ball well, doing lot of things well. I know scores don’t reflect that," he said. 

Anthony Kim is shown during day 1 of the LIV Golf Invitational - Jeddah at Royal Greens Golf & Country Club in King Abdullah Economic City, Saudi Arabia, on March 1, 2024. (Francois Nel/Getty Images)

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Kim will have another chance to prove he’s back to form in Hong Kong next weekend for the next LIV Golf event.