Remember Anthony Kim? First interview in 3 years

Around 8 years ago, Anthony Kim was golf’s next big thing. Five years later he quit golf.

When Anthony Kim won his first PGA tour event in 2008, and then thrilled everyone at the Ryder Cup it looked like he was on his way to major success. and towards the top of world golf. The supremely talented American was exciting to watch, but as Robert Allenby hinted at during the 2009 Presidents Cup, had a reputation for partying a little too hard.

Kim won two more times on the PGA Tour, finished top-10 in three majors including a 3rd place finish at the 2010 Masters. But by 2012 he was gone.

Kim has given his first interview in three years to AP’s Doug Ferguson and it’s worth a full read. Some highlights:

He earned just over $12 million in five full seasons on the PGA Tour and says he saved up more money than people realize. The stories and photos on social media over the years painted a wild side to Kim. He doesn’t deny he lived different than most golfers, nor will be apologize.

“If you don’t like the way I live, change the channel. You’re the one who tuned in here,” Kim said. “A lot of the golf public may not appreciate the way I live, which is by my own rules. But I give everyone respect. I’m not rude to anyone. And I treat everyone the same.”

And there are some theories he hasn’t been playing to ensure he gets paid injury insurance money. Ferguson raises this with Kim as well.

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 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.”

Hmmm. It doesn’t sound like he’s that keen to get back into golf. At 30 years of age and the young guns striping the ball longer than ever before, it’d be hard to see Kim ever being competitive again after such a long layoff.

The full article is worth a read all the same.

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