This feature originally appeared in the 2025 Summer edition of the Cal Sports Quarterly. The Cal Athletics flagship magazine features long-form sports journalism at its finest and provides in-depth coverage of the scholar-athlete experience in Berkeley. Printed copies are mailed four times a year to Bear Backers who give annually at the Bear Club level (currently $600 or more). For more information on how you can receive a printed version of the Cal Sports Quarterly at home, send an email to CalAthleticsFund@berkeley.edu or call (510) 642-2427.
Michael Kim lingered near the ropes following a runner-up finish at the Waste Management Phoenix Open, where a couple approached him – not for an autograph, but to thank him. Kim had offered free tickets to the tournament through a giveaway on his X account earlier that week, and the two fans won. Now they were face to face with the PGA Tour pro and California men's golf alum who made it happen.
"It takes five, ten minutes for me to sort out," Kim said. "But for them, it might be a memory they carry forever."
The moment wasn't about publicity. It was about connection – a small act that says plenty about the version of Kim now reemerging on Tour during an impressive 2025 season. After years of struggling to regain form, Kim isn't just playing better golf. He's giving fans – the new and the old, the nerds and the casuals – an inside look at his game and the Tour at large.
If you ask Kim when things started clicking on the golf course, he'll take you back to the early 2010s in Berkeley. The 2011-12 season was his first year as a Golden Bear, and Kim was one of many confident underclassmen on the roster with something the prove. The Bears, led by then-junior Max Homa, reached the NCAA Championship semifinals before falling short of the ultimate goal of a national title.
"We felt like underdogs constantly," Kim said. "We really worked at it to get better. I think we were all just hungrier to improve."
That hunger turned into dominance the following season. The 2012-13 Cal men's golf team became one of the most decorated in NCAA history, winning 12 tournaments – an NCAA record – and finishing the regular season as the nation's top-ranked team. Kim was the No. 1-ranked college golfer in the country and won the prestigious Haskins Award, given annually to the national player of the year in the sport.
Despite falling short of an NCAA title again – Cal faltered in the semifinals a second straight year – the team left its mark.
"We knew we had a really good team, but I don't think anyone expected us to win that many tournaments," Kim said. "It was a launching pad for my personal career. I feel like I improved more in those two years at Cal than at any other time in my life."
The key to those improvements? An iron-sharpens-iron culture instilled by Cal Athletics Hall of Fame head coach Steve Desimone.
"He absolutely hated it if we were late," Kim said, laughing. "Even today, I try to make sure I'm on time for everything."
But Desimone wasn't just a disciplinarian. He understood when to let go of the reins. Kim remembers how Desimone gave players freedom to structure their practice routines, trusting that they were mature enough to know what they needed.
"That was our culture. We recruited good teammates," said Desimone, who led the Cal men's golf program to sustained success for nearly four decades between 1979-2016.
"Kids with a sense of humor, competitors, and downright good guys. We were fortunate to have very few mistakes in that department. Michael was certainly a home run.
"He fell into our laps, really. Despite a great record in junior golf, he didn't really look the part; the truth is, he couldn't hit the ball out of his own shadow. But he had a great personality, an understated sense of humor, and true determination. It didn't take long for Michael to take our program by storm. The question then became, 'How good can this guy be?'"
Desimone's mentorship extended beyond the course. Kim recalled how his former head coach could turn a random encounter at an airport into a conversation with a potential donor. That knack for human connection left an impression.
"You learn a lot of life skills through a guy like Coach Des," Kim said. "Not just golf skills."
Kim – who turned pro in the winter of 2013, midway through his junior year at Cal – has maintained strong bonds with his former Golden Bear teammates. He keeps in close contact with Homa and the recent 2025 Cal Athletics Hall of Fame electee Michael Weaver, among others. Even with guys like Collin Morikawa – whom he didn't overlap with at Cal – there's a deep mutual respect rooted in their shared college legacy.
"The Cal connection is there," Kim said. "I still get 'Go Bears' out there. The alumni support is real."
Kim's recent resurgence on the PGA Tour isn't about a sudden breakthrough. It's the result of slow, deliberate progress over several years. Not long after he won his first and only Tour title at the 2018 John Deere Classic, Kim fell into a world of struggle on the course. He missed 23 consecutive cuts at one point and eventually lost his PGA Tour card.
With longtime swing coach Sean Foley at his side, Kim was able to regain control of his game. His 2025 Tour season has been filled with highlights, including five consecutive top-15 finishes, a return to the Masters Tournament, and a top-30 spot in the FedEx Cup standings.
"It's like a culmination of all the things I've been working on," Kim said. "I've made minor improvements everywhere."
One breakthrough came after a chipping lesson with instructor Joe Mayo earlier this year. Everything clicked in early February during the Waste Management Phoenix Open, where Kim finished runner-up and sparked his streak of five straight top-15 finishes.
"It didn't feel like a one-week stand," he said. "It felt containable. Like I have a real foundation to build on."
Kim's return to form on the course has run parallel to his growing presence on
social media, particularly X (formerly known as Twitter). He posts tournament thoughts, mental health reflections, and behind-the-scenes insights that fans rarely hear.
With the final round of the U.S. Open Championship still underway this past Father's Day, Kim – who finished play earlier in the day and eventually tied for 50th – was already engaging with fans in a Q&A on X about the difficulties of playing Oakmont Country Club and more.
The interactive approach, he says, was inspired in part by Homa, his close friend and former Cal teammate.
"I don't think I'm as witty as Max, but I've learned a lot through the ups and downs of my career," Kim said. "I felt like I had stories to share."
Kim sees shows like Netflix's 'Drive to Survive' or 'Full Swing' as proof that fans crave authenticity.
Giving away tickets is just one way he tries to connect. Kim says it's a win-win – creating memories for fans while building a stronger community around his game.
"Now every tournament I go to, people come up to say thank you for the tickets," Kim said. "And they start following my game. That's powerful."
