Anthony Kim is a sideshow in this circus of atrocities

When Anthony Kim hits his first tee shot after a nearly 12-year hiatus from professional golf, much of the fanbase who have been clamoring for his return won’t see it.

LIV Golf Jeddah — the site of this week’s 54-hole shotgun start and stage for AK’s return — will air on television around 3am ET for the United States. This was by design, of course, as LIV Golf cares not about the opinion of American golf fans. They’ve instead strategically chosen to hold Kim as a bargaining chip of sorts, hoping the temptation of watching his return is enough for stateside LIV fans to adjust their alarm clocks. It’s brilliant. It’s obscene. It’s all part of a larger plan.

Amid the thousands of social media posts commenting about Anthony Kim’s physical appearance — which is notably different from the last time we saw him publicly — something else happened in a neighboring sport that got much less attention. The Public Investment Fund (PIF) finalized a deal with the ATP Tour in men’s professional tennis to become a major sponsor for the next five years. It’s the Saudi-backed fund’s largest financial investment in pro sports to date, slipping by right under our noses.

It’s difficult for American golf fans to not view everything through a US-centric lens that artificially heightens our own self-importance, suggesting that our viewers are the most valuable and therefore should be a priority to satisfy. Questions arose as to why Anthony Kim would return in Jeddah as opposed to a LIV event in the States. The fact the most mysterious character in men’s pro golf in over a decade is making his return in the Kingdom’s back yard tells you everything you need to know about the strategy behind this move.

Nothing that LIV Golf has done is by mistake. They know American golf fans want to see Kim, and they also know our fanbase is the most divided in terms of support for the tour. The signing of Kim is less about giving the fans what they want and more about purchasing something before we can.

If it sounds like I’m dehumanizing AK… you would be correct. That’s the entire point of what LIV Golf is doing. They don’t want men’s professional golf in the United States. They want the whole damn sport. Kim is but a pawn in this game, amplified by the hilariously over-the-top social media teaser trailers and dramatic commentary around his return to the sport.

There’s little doubt this message has spread to the rest of LIV’s roster, too. Look no further than Talor Gooch’s recent commentary around the Masters and Rory McIlroy potentially winning the grand slam at a “weaker” event. This may be the farthest reach I’ll make in this piece, but are we really surprised Gooch’s interview gained steam after McIlroy won The Match the previous night? It’s all part of the plan.

LIV Golf has doubled-down on their insinuation that they are somehow being mistreated by everyone else in the golf world, so now they’re taking their proverbial ball and going home. This is exactly what they want us to believe, and Anthony Kim’s debut in Jeddah is nothing more than a haphazard power play.

To his credit, Kim appears to be excited to get back on the course among names he admitted he doesn’t know. Maybe it’s all an act. If so, he’s doing a great job at it.

Now 38, he is far-removed from the energetic 20-something with no career ceiling and tons of potential and fandom. Those same fans now have a chance for closure on one of the more captivating careers in the sport, even if the player himself had closure years ago. Kim is the ultimate social media influencer without even realizing it, which is fitting for a Tour with viewership numbers best reserved for YouTube.

I think that’s the biggest question in my mind around the rationale behind Kim’s signing: did he really need to do this?

Aside from the obvious financial benefit to LIV, does Kim have any idea about the shitstorm he’s about to experience? He hasn’t experienced the unforgiving nature of Golf Twitter, let alone being a major player in golf’s civil war. Media ridicule has always been a thing, but it has snowballed into a circus of mayhem unlike anything he saw while galavanting around with an American flag at the Ryder Cup.

There’s little doubt LIV Golf has considered all of this. They just don’t care for the reasons you and I might.