Anthony Kim SHANKS par-4 fifth shot in his first tournament in over 12 years as former PGA champion ends the day LAST on his highly-anticipated LIV Golf debut in Saudi Arabia

Former Majors champion Anthony Kim’s long-awaited return to golf after over a decade was marred by a full-bore shank ahead of a last-place finish.

Kim’s rust was displayed in his LIV Golf debut in Saudi Arabia on Friday. The event at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club is Kim’s first tournament since the Wells Fargo Championship in 2012.

Kim is playing as a wildcard for the rest of LIV’s 2024 season and is not listed on any of the 13 teams. At the end of Day 1, Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII sits on top of the leaderboard. Kim, on the other hand, opened with a 6-over 76 on the other side of the board. 

Given his hiatus, Kim’s last-place finish came as no surprise to some. However, his worst moment came in the par-4 fifth, when his approach shot resulted in a full-bore shank.

‘I would be lying to say that I didn´t have certain expectations. Even if I played bad, I thought I would shoot around par,’ Kim said. ‘It was unfortunate that I made so many unforced errors from the middle of the fairway. That´s generally my strength is my iron game. To make so many unforced errors is really disappointing.’

After his last professional tournament in May of 2012, Kim is joining LIV Golf as a wild card

‘I´ve got a lot to build on, and I´m looking forward to the next two days.’ 

A three-time winner on the PGA Tour, the 38-year-old Californian now has a young daughter and is trying to compete again after more than a decade of hardly any golf activity.

Kim started on the par-5 18th in the shotgun start and put his opening tee shot in the fairway.

‘Fairway looked very narrow, so to be able to hit the fairway was nice,’ Kim said. ‘Got off to a good start, and then made an unforced error with my second shot. Just too many unforced errors. But really played better than the score, and I know I can clean that up pretty quickly.’

LIV goes to Hong Kong next week. Kim will not play in the United States until April 5 at Trump Doral outside Miami. He can accrue individual points, which would give him a chance to be a permanent player for LIV in 2025.

Kim was among only eight players who were over par in the first round at Royal Greens.

Brooks Koepka, meanwhile, managed only two birdies in a round of 69 as he goes for a third straight LIV title in Saudi Arabia.