PGA Tour Pro Anthony Kim Finally Opened Up About Where He’s Been The Last Three Years And If He’s Coming Back

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Anthony Kim burst onto the professional golf scene in 2007 and immediately became a household name (for people who actually follow golf, not for people who only know Tiger Woods). He had a successful 2008 campaign that included two win and a Ryder Cup appearance where he destroyed Sergio Garcia in his Sunday Singles match. Kim had a fairly successful 2009 and added another win to his resume in 2010. But in 2011 Kim’s play started to slide and by the end of 2012 he looked like he was done with professional golf.

Since his abrupt disappearance from golf in 2013, Anthony Kim’s life has been a bit of a mystery. Rumors have swirled as to what the once promising talent was doing with his life. The largest of such rumors being that he is pretending to still be injured so he can continue to cash in on a $10,000,000 insurance policy.

That is where the wild speculation surrounding Kim comes in. But is it the truth? After several years of silence, Kim decided it was time to clear the air and, most importantly, clear his name.

According to his interview with TheScore:

“I’ve been watching more and more. I miss the competition a little bit. Watching these young guys like Jordan Spieth is bringing me back to watch.”

Is it enough to bring him back to play?

Not yet. Maybe not ever.

“Here’s what I’m telling you today,” he said. “I’m going to step away from the game for a little while and get my body pieced together. Instead of going from an Achilles injury to try to go 180 mph and not fixing the problem … I’ve got so much ground to make up from injuries — rotator cuff, labrum, spinal fusion, hand injury. I’ve had six or seven surgeries in the last three-and-a-half years.”

As for people who claim Kim is just sitting on the sideline milking his insurance policy, here’s what he had to say about that:

He said he is getting monthly payments from an insurance policy he took out five years ago in case he was injured. But he denied speculation in a magazine story last fall that the policy was a factor that is keeping him from returning to the PGA Tour.

”I paid well into the mid-six figures for the policy,” he said. ”They wouldn’t have paid me every month had I not been to the doctors, showing them all my X-rays, doing all the treatment, the acupuncture, twice a day for physical therapy.”

Kim also mentioned in the interview that he is rehabbing every day and he hinted at the fact that he would want to play again. However, he has no plans of trying to compete with the likes of Jason Day and Jordan Spieth if he has lingering health issues and is at a physical disadvantage.

Fair points, I suppose, but golf isn’t like riding a bike; you actually have to practice and play a shit load to stay good at it. After such a long hiatus, one that Kim thinks will last at least another two years, I highly doubt we will ever see the Anthony Kim of 2008 again. And that’s a goddamn shame.

Totally Unrelated — But Kind Of Related? — Note: Nike Golf should bring back with that shirt style. Dig the hollow swoosh.

[H/T TheScore]