Tiger Woods vs. Anthony Kim: Is History Repeating Itself?

During the late '50s and early '60s, Arnold Palmer was the undisputed king of golf. Palmer made such an impression with both his skill and uncanny likability that he is still today referred to as the "The King."

During the early '60s, Palmer appeared to be on a high-speed elevator heading straight to the top of the game’s record books, becoming one of the greatest players of all time. In a seven-year span between 1958 and 1964, he won seven major championships that included four wins at Augusta.

Then, Palmer got a glimpse of a confident, heavyset frat boy from Ohio named Jack Nicklaus who hit the ball further and straighter than anyone had ever seen before. Palmer immediately knew that the PGA Tour he had become accustomed to dominating would be vastly different with Nicklaus around.

Nicklaus was 11 years younger than Palmer and arrived on the scene right smack in the middle of Palmer’s prime playing years.

In 1962, Nicklaus beat Palmer in an 18-hole playoff at the U.S. Open played at Oakmont Country Club in front of Palmer’s loud and rowdy hometown crowd, which came to be known as "Arnie’s Army."

At this point, if he was not already concerned, his loss to Nicklaus in front of his hometown crowd on a course he knew like the back of his hand must have had Palmer shaking in his spikes.

By around 1965 it would become painfully clear to Palmer that Nicklaus had swooped in and literally stolen the second half of his career.

As we all know, Nicklaus went on to dominate the PGA Tour in a way never before seen from any player in the history of the game at that time.

However, toward the later stages of his prime, Nicklaus too lost out on several major championships to a young up-and-coming player named Tom Watson, who happened to be nine years his junior. Between the years of 1975 and 1983, Nicklaus finished second to Watson in no less than five major championships. 

Now, Watson did not appear on the scene and steal Nicklaus’ thunder as dramatically as Nicklaus had done to Palmer 10 years earlier. Nicklaus still completely shattered the record for all-time career major wins.

However, Nicklaus’ record might have been that much more difficult for a player such as Tiger Woods to break if Watson had never shown up and if Nicklaus had been able to go on and win 23 majors instead of his current record of 18.

Now jump ahead to 2008: Are we once again seeing history repeating itself? 

At the young age of 23, exactly 10 years younger than Tiger Woods, Anthony Kim burst onto the PGA Tour’s main stage during the 2008 season.

Kim won two events, finished seventh at the British Open, and is considered to be the main factor in the American’s victory over the Europeans at the Ryder Cup. He clearly has the talent to compete at golf’s highest level, but so have many others.

What sets Anthony Kim apart more than his tremendous talent is the so-called "X-Factor" he possesses. 

The "X-Factor" in a golfer could best be described as a level of confidence that borders upon being cocky. It is a level of confidence that screams, “I don’t care who you are or where we are playing; I am going to beat you.”

That level of confidence is what allows great golfers to continually excel under the most intense pressure the game has to offer.

Nicklaus had it. Woods has an abundance of it. Kim walks with a confident, almost cocky swagger and seems to actually enjoy playing in golf’s most pressure-packed situations. 

As a 23-year-old Ryder Cup rookie, Kim happened to draw the unlucky task of having to face America’s biggest nemesis over the past decade, Sergio Garcia, in his final singles match.

Kim trounced Garcia 5-and-4 and appeared to genuinely love every second of playing in what many believe to be the most intense pressure in all of golf.

Kim is exactly 10 years younger than Woods, he is highly talented, and he simply oozes confidence. Sound familiar? 

Could Anthony Kim be the Nicklaus to Tiger’s Palmer, or the Watson to Tiger’s Nicklaus? Could Kim swoop in and at least steal several majors away from Woods throughout the second half of Woods’ career? 

Most would believe that scenario to be far-fetched, maybe even ridiculous. Tiger Woods is by far the best player in the world right now and is well on his way to becoming the greatest golfer of all-time, if he is not there already. 

However, that is very likely the exact same thing said of Palmer before Nicklaus arrived on the scene, and of Nicklaus before Watson arrived later on in his career. 

Anthony Kim has more or less had one great season, which has never been enough to make any kind of accurate prediction on the course his career will take. However, he is the first player since Woods to show a true combination of spectacular skill and an abundance of confidence.

If Kim crumbles in Woods' path to greatness, which at times can appear to be eerily predestined, he would certainly not be the first. 

Tiger Woods is dominating the PGA Tour during an era of unprecedented parity, which would suggest that Woods is arguably the most dominant player of all time.

However, history tends to have a way of repeating itself.

Could Kim be this generation’s player to come along and knock the great one off his pedestal? 

Time will tell.