Anthony Kim, the golfer who came back from hell: “I pretended to be happy because I wanted to make more money”

If you look at a photo of Anthony Kim when he was a member of the PGA Tour and then look at a current one, you can see how the “vices and impulses” he cites have taken their toll on his face. His life did not change just because of a torn Achilles tendon during the 2012 Wells Fargo that eventually pushed him into retirement.

Kim, who played on the PGA Tour between 2007 and 2012, had mental health and addiction problems as far back as his college days. During those years he even enjoyed a meteoric rise in the golfing world, which he underlined with three PGA Tour victories before the age of 25. The injury was the consequence of the lifestyle he was leading. “In rehab I found faith, self-love, respect and purpose,” he confessed in a documentary. Today he has a happy family and has just regained his place on LIV Golf after dropping out at the end of last season. He finished third in the LIV Golf Promotions tournament, which allows him to play this year in the full season of this circuit.

2024Kimexposed himself to a return of the million-dollar injury policy he collected

Flushing It GolfIt doesn’t matter if you go to church six days a week or not, we all have impulses and vices

. And some people are smart and strong enough not to beat around the bush,” AK begins by explaining.

I choose to be ridiculed. I choose to take it all on, not because I’m tough or anything else, but because I think the world needs it

“Now I care about trying to live a sober life with my family and being happy, because in my 20s I was very unhappy

. I pretended to be happy because I wanted to make more money.

I know that’s what attracts sponsors: someone who’s always smiling and never has a bad day in public

. But that’s not real life. And it’s okay to be yourself. We’re all different. We’re all weird, but I feel more comfortable with myself than ever,” he explains.