I was dubbed ‘the next Tiger Woods’ but have been unemployed for 12 years – now I’m paying £8MILLION to return to golf

ANTHONY KIM says he is a man with a mission, as the golfing genius turned party animal makes a shock return to competitive action on Friday.

Former Ryder Cup star Kim, who was dubbed ‘the next Tiger Woods’ when he burst onto the scene as a precariously talented 20 year old, has handed back an £8million insurance payout to revive his professional career.

AP:Associated Press

Anthony Kim is set to make a shock return to competitive golf[/caption]

Kim, 38, will play in the 12 remaining LIV Golf events this year as a “wild card”, starting with the Saudi Arabia leg in Jeddah.

That will end a 12 year absence from the game that has been punctuated by constant rumours that he was planning a comeback.

This time it is not just speculation – KIm yesterday announced: “After stepping away from the game years ago due to injury, I’m happy to officially announce my return to the world of professional golf.

“It’s been a long time coming and I’m very grateful for all the highs, lows and lessons learned from the first part of my career.

“I want to compete with the best players in the world, and I’m on a mission to prove to myself that I can win again.”

Just proving that he can play again would be a start.

One of the most recent sightings of Kim before his move to LIV came when a golf fan stopped him in the street and asked him the state of his golf game.

“Um…non-existent,” Kim replied.

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One player who will hope that the American has recaptured his talent is Rory Mcilroy, who admits he was a big fan of the young Kim.

A few years ago McIlroy commented: “I miss Anthony Kim. The Tour was a better place with him in it. He was exciting.”

Kim was also highly controversial. He was brash and flash, and became famous for his large diamond studded belt buckles, with the initials AK on them.

He also owned up his passion for wild parties, and was plagued by rumours that he was forced to serve at least one ban after failing a drug test.

But he could play. In 2008, the 22 year old Kim became the first player under the age of 25 to win twice in the same year since a certain Tiger Woods.

Kim broke into the world’s top ten that year, and Woods confirmed he was also a fan.

He and Kim were filmed practising together at a Donald Trump course for a promotional video, and the 15 time Major champion said he had rarely seen a player who could ‘flush it’ with every club in the bag.

Kim gave another demonstration of his talent when he made his Ryder Cup debut at Valhalla in 2008, as the youngest member of the USA team.

He handed Ryder Cup legend Sergio Garcia a 5&4 spanking, and contributed two and a half points as the Yanks secured their first win over Europe since 1999.

His third place in the 2010 Masters – a year after he blitzed Augusta National with 11 birdies in one round – was supposed to be the springboard for a long assault at the Majors.

LIV Golf

Kim will appear as a ‘wild card’ for the rest of the LIV Golf season[/caption]

AP

He was dubbed ‘the ‘next ‘the next Tiger Woods’ before his break from the sport[/caption]

But then came the injuries, starting with a recurring thumb problem, followed by a wrist injury, and a torn achilles tendon.

Kim kept entering tournaments and withdrawing from them. He has not played competitively since the 2012 Wells Fargo Championship, when he walked off the course during the first round.

As his absence dragged on, it emerged he had accepted an insurance payout on the condition that he never played professional golf again.

Presumably, he has had to pay that cash back – or maybe LIV’s Saudi backers have settled his account to make him their latest high profile capture.

Either way, Kim is now free to chase the mega millions on offer from the LIV circuit.

It is not often you say the eyes of the golfing world will be trained on Jeddah – but that will definitely be the case this weekend.