Anthony Kim earns LIV Golf status this year via top Promotions finish
Asanka Ratnayake
There were tense moments during the middle of the round Sunday, and even though Anthony Kim admittedly didn’t have his best stuff, it was still good enough to finish third in the LIV Golf Promotions event, giving him the final exempt spot into the league for this season.
The 40-year-old was given a spot in the league in 2024 and knew that this year he’d have to either play well or face the promotions event, which he did this week at Black Diamond Ranch in Lecanto, Fla.
Canada’s Richard T. Green and Sweden’s Bjorn Hellgren collected the first two spots and will join Kim Feb. 4 in the first event in Saudi Arabia.
A 66 on Saturday set Kim up nicely for a top finish on Sunday. He struggled early and was one over par after six holes, made two birdies and bogeyed the 10th hole to sit at even on the day and right around that third-place marker. He birdies 11 and 16 to give himself some space and a bogey at the last put him in at one-under 69, and two shots ahead of those tied for fourth place.
“It feels great,” Kim said. “I’m not here to prove everybody wrong. I’m here to prove myself right. I’ve worked so hard. I’m so grateful that I’m back on this stage.”
Lee, 35, is the first Canadian to play in LIV Golf. He absolutely cruised the entire week, shooting 64-66-64-65 to take medalist honors by five shots over the 35-year-old Hellgren, who shot a final-round 64. Lee played in the 2007 U.S. Open at Oakmont as a 16-year-old and has won six times in Asia.
“It’s been a good three years I’ve been trying to come on LIV Golf through the International Series,” Lee said. “Worked pretty hard to get to this position and looking forward to this year.”
Lucas Bjerregaard, Jeunghun Wang, Sarit Suwannarut, Kieran Vincent, Oliver Bekker, Jazz Janewatananond, Takanori Konishi, Matt Jones, Cory Crawfird and Chris Wood all earned exempt status into the Asian Tour’s International Series.
Kim finished 56th in the league’s individual standings in 2024 and 55th in 2025. His best finish so far was a tie for 25th place in Dallas in June last year. He tied for fifth place in late November in the PIF Saudi International.
“This is just the first step,” Kim said Sunday in Florida. “But I’m glad I earned my spot.
“I’ll be back soon, and I’ll be winning golf tournaments.”