Head down and no nonsense. This is not Brooks Koepka as we know him. The five-time Major winner faced one of the toughest moments since his decision to leave LIV Golf and return to the PGA Tour this Tuesday. He faced the most delicate press conference of his sporting career ahead of the Farmers Insurance Open and managed to come out unscathed. He opted for a low profile, empathy, and gratitude. No grudges. No bad faces. No unresolved issues.
The first thing he did when facing the journalists was to admit he was nervous. Imagine that, someone who has conquered five Majors, three PGA Championships, and two US Opens, a top player among top players, can also tremble at the questions of a handful of journalists. If it was a strategy to evoke sympathy, we could say he succeeded, as there was no bad blood. He was asked about everything, and he answered everything, but without malice.
The only explicit reference to LIV Golf was to thank Yasir Al Rumayyan and Scott O’Neil for the ease they provided him in leaving the Saudi league. “I am very grateful. They understood my situation, my reasons, and we reached an agreement where everyone was happy,” he explained.
Regarding those reasons, Koepka attributed everything to his family. “Without going into details, although I think many know them, the main motivation to leave LIV Golf and return to the PGA Tour was family. I wanted to be closer to family, and that circuit allows me to do so. I can have my family closer because there are fewer trips. This week my wife and son are here, and they will accompany me more. It was a decision based on what I thought was best for me and my wife,” he explained. (He refers to his wife losing their second child last year).
That’s the official explanation, he says it, and there’s no more to discuss, but it’s inevitable to ask a question aloud: Wasn’t one of the advantages of going to LIV Golf supposed to be the possibility of spending more time with family because there were fewer tournaments? Now it turns out that playing only in the United States 20-25 weeks is more family-friendly than 14 worldwide? What Koepka says may be the absolute truth or not, but it’s what he says.
The only moment he really resembled the Brooks we all know was when asked if he regretted the decision to go to LIV. “I don’t regret anything in my life. Everything has served me to learn, mature, and grow as a person and player,” he said categorically.
Regarding the process that led him to the PGA Tour, Koepka explained the timeline: “We made the decision to leave LIV in September during the Ryder Cup, while in New York. I made it only with my team and family. The same day LIV released me, the first thing I did was call Tiger Woods to explain the situation and tell him I wanted to return to the PGA Tour. I’ve always had a great relationship with Tiger and have consulted him on many things. Then I called Jay Monahan. I didn’t call Brian Rolapp because I don’t know him. They made it very easy for me, and I am very grateful for it. Grateful and excited for the opportunity to start again from scratch,” he noted.
Koepka acknowledged that “I thought it would take longer to return. I didn’t expect to come back so quickly. I was willing to accept whatever they told me. I am very happy to be here, excited and thrilled to play every week with Scheffler or Rory McIlroy and start from scratch. I know I have to earn my place in the Signature Events, and that’s fine with me. The goal now is to win a tournament soon. It’s a challenge, and I’m very excited about the idea of starting from scratch. This week will be great to know exactly where my game is.”
The Florida golfer revealed that he will play as much as he can until the Masters to arrive as well-prepared as possible in Augusta. He also confirmed that he will play THE PLAYERS and did not want to talk more about the relations between LIV and the PGA Tour. “I’ve never gotten involved in politics, neither on one side nor the other, and I’m not going to do it now. I’m just happy to be here.”
He didn’t even want to leave the shadow of doubt that LIV could be a worse circuit for preparing for the Majors, an idea widely held among fans and experts. “I’m not going to make excuses. Last year I played very poorly in the Majors because of my fault and only my fault. My game wasn’t at the necessary level… and then it’s not easy to make a cut in a major, you have to play very well, let alone win.”
Returning to the nerves, Koepka admitted he is nervous about the reception he will get from the public on Thursday. “I don’t know what I’m going to find. I hope they’re happy, as many players have told me these days. I’m sure I’ll also have conversations with others who don’t like me being here as much, but that’s no problem. I want to talk to everyone,” he concluded.
The other big question was to know which group the PGA Tour would place him in upon his return to competition. His playing partners are Ludvig Aberg and Max Homa. It’s not the best of groups, but it’s one of the main ones.
