Brooks Koepka hasn’t been right for some time now.
Not since his left knee started bothering him last year and then required surgery Sept. 2 to repair a partially torn patella tendon, which he then re-aggravated in October when he slipped on wet concrete and was forced to withdraw from the CJ Cup at Nine Bridges in South Korea.
Thus, one of the most imposing figures in professional golf with his Popeye arms, six-pack abs and barrel chest, as well as a resume just as intimidating – he won three times in 2019, including his fourth major coming at the PGA Championship, and posted runner-up finishes in the Masters and U.S. Open plus a tie for fourth in the British Open – became a bit player instead of a first-page leaderboard occupant.
Check the results. Back in August, he was leading the FedEx Cup standings and ranked No. 1 in the world. Now he’s 213th in the FedEx Cup standings and No. 3 in the world.
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His most recent top 10 came when he finished fourth in the Tour Championship last August. He started this wraparound season with a missed cut in Las Vegas, the WD in South Korea and then skipped the Presidents Cup because of said bum knee. He started this year with ties for 34th and 17th in a swing through the Middle East on the European Tour, then tied for 43rd in the Genesis Invitational, missed the cut in the Honda Classic and tied for 47th in the Arnold Palmer Invitational before the PGA Tour shut down three months ago.
Was Koepka reaching a boiling point? Not in the least.
Koepka never lost his cool nor his confidence during the stretch. Still, the three-month break due to the COVID-19 pandemic was a blessing. A new and improved Koepka – check out the fresh ‘stache – arrived at Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth, Texas, as the PGA Tour resumes pay with the Charles Schwab Challenge.
“I got lucky,” Koepka said Wednesday at Colonial. “(The break) was definitely beneficial for me. I was able to kind of reassess where I was at, get the knee stronger. The knee is back. It’s a lot better. And then finally be able just to swing the club the right way and kind of get back to the process or the way of thinking that I had before. It’s been a blessing in disguise for me without a doubt.”
Koepka has never been one to sweat, has always shouldered the blame and just moved forward. He thought he was on the right track at the Players Championship before the PGA Tour’s flagship event – and the Tour – was halted after the first round in March.
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“It was starting to come around. I felt something positive. But right now it’s a million times better,” he said. “The swing feels like it’s in a great spot. I’m controlling ball flights, controlling spin, yardages, putting it good, chipping it good. I feel like a new person, honestly.
“The way I’m able to move right now is a lot better than I was three months ago, four months ago, and I’m excited. It really is going to be fun to tee it up again.”
Koepka admitted he dug himself a hole but is certain he’ll pull himself out of it. He’s been at Colonial since Saturday, played every day since, and will pull on good vibes from his only start in the tournament in 2018, when he shot a pair of 63s and finished second to Justin Rose. He also has experience in dealing with layoffs due to injuries, so concern is not in his yardage book.
“It feels like I’ve done this too many times over the last two years with injuries and stuff like that, having a couple months off, but to finally be back playing, it’s exciting, and I can’t wait to tee it up,” he said. “If I do what I’m supposed to do, I’ll be just fine. I didn’t do what I was supposed to do. It is what it is; I can’t change it. It’s in the past. I dug myself a little bit of a hole. But you play good, you win, everything will take care of itself.”
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