There’s a peculiar energy in the air when a ghost of golf’s past suddenly steps into the spotlight, not just to wave, but to compete. Anthony Kim, once a dazzling young star draped in swagger and promise, has stirred the embers of a long-cooled fire with a second-round 64 at the PIF Saudi International. It was bogey-free and vintage. After 36 holes, the 40-year-old is 11-under par, sitting just three shots off the lead at Riyadh Golf Club.
A Familiar Name in Unfamiliar Territory
This isn’t just a good round. It’s the first time Kim has been this close to the front of the pack heading into the weekend since the 2011 Singapore Open. For context, Rory McIlroy had one major back then. Tiger was still chasing records, and LIV Golf didn’t exist.
Kim’s unexpected resurgence has arrived after more than a decade of absence, followed by a rocky return via LIV Golf. He played 23 events in the breakaway league, but rarely threatened the leaderboard and was eventually relegated. There were whispers; had the game passed him by? Was the mystique simply nostalgia? But now, here he is: contending.
Old Anthony Kim Flair, But a New Focus
And not just squeaking by. Anthony Kim is T-3, tied with Ryder Cup stalwart Tyrrell Hatton and Spain’s rising talent Josele Ballester. He trails only 21-year-old Caleb Surratt and Belgium’s Thomas Pieters, two players from vastly different eras of golf. It’s a wild juxtaposition: Kim, whose last worldwide win came in 2010 at the Shell Houston Open, is facing off against players who were barely in high school when he last raised a trophy.
Yet, his second-round brilliance wasn’t loud. It was clinical. “I followed my wife’s direction well today,” he joked, explaining his strategy of simply making more birdies than bogeys. The plan worked. And beneath the humor is a sincerity that hints at a player who might just be falling in love with golf again.
From Forgotten to Possible Contender
Since LIV’s relegation, Kim’s global performances have quietly improved. He’s made the weekend in four of his last five starts on the Asian Tour. Still ranked 1,801st in the world, his road back to relevance is steep, but not impassable.
If this week ends with a trophy, and that’s still a big “if” with 36 holes remaining, it could ignite a narrative no one saw coming. Redemption arcs don’t always announce themselves in grand fashion. Sometimes, they begin with a bogey-free 64 in Saudi Arabia.
And sometimes, they sound a lot like 2010.
