USA TODAY US Edition

Kim to play for 1st time since ’12

- Riley Hamel

Anthony Kim hasn’t played profession­al golf since May 2012, but that changes this week in Saudi Arabia.

On Wednesday, LIV Golf officially announced Kim was joining the league as a season-long wild-card player, meaning he won’t be on any of the 13 teams and will compete as an individual.

Since Kim disappeare­d from golf, fans have wondered if he’d ever return. He knows people around the game want to hear about his time away from it.

“I’ll tell my story when it’s the right time but right now I’m focused on golf,” Kim said in an interview posted to LIV Golf’s social media Wednesday. “I feel great, been a long time coming. Right now I’m focused on playing good this week, got a few weeks of competitiv­e golf in front of me so I’ll tell my story at the right time.

“I’m excited to be out here with my daughter, my family and just enjoy the experience LIV is providing. I think I miss the competitiv­e part of the game. I wouldn’t just say it was golf but just being in the heat of the moment, having the opportunit­y to do something special and I’m looking forward to having that opportunit­y again.”

It’d be easy to dampen exceptions due to his circumstan­ces, but Kim is expecting to play well.

“Eleven years off is a long time, but I feel like I was blessed with a little bit of talent and a little hard work could go a long way, so I’m expecting good results,” he said. “I don’t have too many nerves right now. I don’t know how I’m gonna feel on that first tee, it’s been so long. Golf is just a game, right? So, I’ve gone through enough things in my life where I’m gonna enjoy the moment and try to play the best I can.

“I’ve been putting in some work and I’m ready to go. I’m 38 now, so I don’t know quite a few of the guys, but I’m here to bust everyone’s ass.”

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