Anthony Kim

Anthony Ha-Jin Kim was born in June 19, 1985. He is an American professional golfer.A Korean American, Kim was born in Los Angeles and resides in Dallas, Texas. He attended La Quinta High School in La Quinta, California. After high school, he attended the University of Oklahoma for three years. He was part of the winning USA team in the 2005 Walker Cup. Kim turned professional in 2006 and after receiving a sponsor's exemption he finished in a tie for second on his PGA Tour debut at the 2006 Valero Texas Open. He earned his PGA Tour card through the qualifying school for the 2007 season. He made a strong start and broke into the top 100 in the Official World Golf Rankings in May 2007 with four top 10 finishes during his rookie season on the PGA Tour. During his rookie year on tour it was known by many that he would smoke an ounce of dank a day earning him the nickname from Nick Faldo, "AK the smoking gun". In the 2007 U.S. Open, he shot a final round 67 earning him a tie for 20th place (he started the day at T57). His 67 was the lowest for the round and second lowest for the tournament.

In July 2008, Kim won his second PGA Tour tournament at the AT&T National, defeating Fredrik Jacobson by two shots. Kim shot a 5 under 65 in the fourth round to capture the title. The victory was especially meaningful because the tournament is hosted by Tiger Woods. Furthermore, Kim became the first American under 25 to win twice in one year on the PGA Tour since Tiger Woods in 2000. This win moved him to 14th in the World Rankings. A pair of T-3 finishes in the final two 2008 FedEx Cup events pushed him to 6th in the World Rankings. He has spent over 20 weeks in the top-10 since 2008.
In September 2008, Kim was a critical part of the United States' victory in the Ryder Cup, defeating Ryder Cup veteran Sergio García 5 & 4 in the first match of the Sunday single matches. Later that year he joined the European Tour for the 2009 season, making his debut as a member at the 2008 HSBC Champions, the first tournament of the 2009 season. He is expected to continue to play mainly in the United States.
In a surprised fashion, Anthony Kim dominated the fourth round in the AT&T National 2008 as he won by 2 shots over Fredrik Jacobson. Actually, it wasn't even close on Sunday as he was leading by 4 soon after the mid way point after he holed a putt thanks to a wedge that spun back to 5 feet from the cup. This guy is good, and he is for sure going to be a force to reckon with in the future. With 305.8 yards on average off the tee, 75% greens in regulation and 1.722 putts per hole, Anthony shot a total of 268 12-under par to win the four day tournament. What's really impressive was his final day performance where he shot 65. It seemed like he was just shooting at the pin and it was amazing to watch.
At the 2009 Masters Tournament in Augusta, Georgia at Augusta National Golf Club, Kim set the record for most birdies in a round with eleven in the second round, surpassing Nick Price, who had ten birdies in 1986.vAt the 2009 Presidents Cup, Kim posted an impressive 3-1 record, which included a 5 and 3 victory over Robert Allenby in the Sunday singles match.vKim lost to Ross Fisher in the finals of the Volvo World Match Play in October 2009 4 & 3 after once again beating Robert Allenby in the semi-finals.

PGA golfer Anthony Kim, 22, became the youngest winner on the tour in more than six years, capturing the Wachovia Championship on Sunday, May 4th. The Korean American was born in Los Angeles and resides in Dallas, Texas. He earned his tour card though the qualifying school in time for the 2007 season. He broke into the top 100 in world golf ranking with four top 10 finishes during his rookie year. In April 2008 he reached a new career high of 37th in the world rankings. In his first career win, he defeated Ben Curtis by five shots. Kim’s 16-under par 272 was the lowest score in Wachovia tournament history.vThe win earned Kim $1,152,000 for his victory. He has also qualified for next year’s Masters by achieving his breakthrough victory. He had two previous runner up finishes, last month at Heritage Classic and in the 2006 Texas Open. On April 4, 2010, Kim won the Shell Houston Open, beating Vaughn Taylor in a playoff. He became only the fifth player in 30 years to have won three times on the PGA Tour before the age of 25, the others being Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson, Sergio García and Adam Scott.

Kim also participated in the fourth episode of the second season of Shaq Vs., which aired on August 24, 2010. In the episode, Kim teamed up with Shaquille O'Neal against fellow golf pro Bubba Watson and NBA Hall of Famer Charles Barkley in a five-hole match. Team Shaq won in sudden death with O'Neal making the winning twenty-five foot putt. Anthony is no different than many golf afficionados who, for the past ten years, have been watching and learning from the number one golfer in the world, idolizing Woods as Tiger had done to Jack Nicklaus when he was just a kid. It was only after meeting Woods face-to-face that Kim realized that he needed to step-up his game. And with a “thumbs-up” from Tiger after his victory with a profound, “the sky’s the limit” pat on the back from golf royalty (or as Kim calls Tiger, “the Michael Jordan of golf"), Kim knew what he had to do. After Anthony realized that his “preparation and work ethic couldn’t have gotten any worse", Kim decided to “kick it up a notch” and we are all watching the result of his diligence. After two wins and eleven top-twenty-five finishes this season.