Golfer Chris Kirk recently won the Honda Classic, bringing him his first PGA Tour win in almost eight years. However, Kirk said the real victory was the support he’s received, his sobriety, and the “grace of God.” After his win, Kirk said, “I owe everything that I have in my entire life to my sobriety. I wouldn’t be doing this for a living anymore. I probably wouldn’t have the family that I have currently anymore.”

Kirk, who’s nearly four years sober, said he almost lost everything he cared about when his alcoholism peaked. The 37-year-old pro golfer credited his ability to move past his struggles to the Lord and the support that helped him along the way.

“For that to have happened and worked out for me, obviously, it was some decisions that I made, but mostly the grace of God,” he said. “And a lot of other people that really helped me along the way.”

In the end, Kirk said winning the Honda Classic is wonderful, but it’s a “bonus” to the other blessings he has received in light of how far he’s come. “It’s pretty easy for me to see that winning the Honda Classic is kind of a bonus … when literally every good thing I have in my life I owe to that,” Kirk said.

“I came really close to losing everything that I cared about.”

An honest answer from @Chris_Kirk_ on how sobriety saved his life. pic.twitter.com/nF6rQYomi7

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) February 27, 2023

Kirk, who took home $1,512,000 for securing his win, walked away from golf in 2019 amid struggles with alcoholism and depression, The Associated Press reported. “I just have so much to be thankful for,” Kirk recently told the outlet. “I’m so grateful for my sobriety. I’m so grateful for my family, and I’m so grateful for everyone that has supported me throughout the past three or four years.”

On the eve of his 34th birthday in May 2019, Kirk announced he would take an “indefinite leave” from golf to deal with his alcohol abuse and depression. “I thought I could control it, but after multiple relapses, I have come to realize I can’t fix this on my own,” Kirk added in a social media post.

By that point, his world ranking, which had peaked at 16th after his fourth PGA Tour victory at the Colonial tournament in 2015, had plummeted to 188th. He failed to make the cut in four consecutive events, missing 11 over 17 events in the 2018-19 PGA Tour season.

Kirk said, “When I first came back to playing and was very open and honest about it, that was not in my mind at all. It was more for me because I felt I had lived this life for a number of years where I was just lying to myself, lying to my family, hiding a lot of things.” Next, Kirk teed off in Orlando for the Arnold Palmer Invitational. The tournament’s eve will marked Kirk’s first opportunity to toast his win with family.

“It’ll be a lot of celebrating, and I thank God that alcohol won’t be a part of it,” Kirk said. He might have finished 39th at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, but he’s just glad to be there for the trip. Keep praying for Kirk as he embarks on his journey.