KIAWAH ISLAND, S.C. – Standing on the tee of the 12th hole on The Ocean Course at Kiawah Island in Saturday’s third round of the 103rd PGA Championship, Brooks Koepka was five shots behind leader Phil Mickelson.
Think Koepka was worried?
Yeah, that would be a resounding no.
The big, bad man fears nothing, sweats nothing and treats dealing with pain in both his knees this week as basically no big deal.
He likely hasn’t even done a double take seeing the many alligators lurking in the waters throughout Pete Dye’s masterpiece by the sea.
As for urgency, that’s really not a word in his vocabulary. The native Floridian knows major championships are marathons to grind through instead of sprints to high-step through. So a five-shot deficit? No biggie.
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“I saw Phil was at 10 (under) and I was at 5, but just go about my business,” he said. “I can’t control what he’s doing, I just need to play better. Simple.”
It’s that matter-of-fact approach – united with his enormous physical talents and supreme confidence – that has served Koepka well in the game’s four biggest tournaments. Come Sunday’s final round, he’ll be gunning for his fifth major since the calendar turned to 2017 and his third PGA title in four years.
While Mickelson – who has stunned the golf world with his star turn when few people expected the 200-1 shot to have any chance – came back to the field a bit, Koepka turned in a back-nine 34 and despite three-putting from just off the green on the final hole for bogey, signed for a 2-under-par 70.
At 6 under after rounds of 69-71-70, he’ll start the final 18 alongside Mickelson in the final group, the two separated by one shot.
“At least I can see what Phil is doing and then I don’t have to turn back and look and see what he’s up to,” Koepka said. “Looking forward to it. Got a chance, and everybody will be in front of me, so I know what I’ve got to do.”
One thing he knows he’s has got to do is putt better.
“I left a lot out there. I’ve got a chance to win, so that’s all I wanted to do today is not give back any shots and be there tomorrow with a chance, and I’ve got that,” he said. “But that was the worst putting performance I’ve ever had in my career. Can’t get much worse. I thought 70 was about the highest I could have shot.
“I’m right where I want to be, and we’ll see how tomorrow goes. Just be within three of the lead going into the back nine and you’ve got a chance.”
As for his knees that were bandaged in the third round, he hasn’t had many problems. He’s toned back his workouts and said the strength in both knees, especially his surgically repaired right knee, has increased. He hasn’t had any issue pushing off the knee when hitting driver, something that, while he didn’t fear it, was a bit of a concern.
What isn’t a concern is the forecast for the final round, which calls for a completely different wind direction than the players have seen all week. You guess it; wind doesn’t bother him much, either.
“It doesn’t matter. Just got to go out and go play good golf,” he said. “Doesn’t matter what direction the wind is going. The goal is still the same. Just need to putt better. Simple. If I strike it anything like I did the last three days, I’ll have a chance.
“It’s a tough golf course. I thought it definitely played easier for sure, but this golf course you can make one little mistake and it can be costly. That’s why it’s a major championship. I think this place is perfect for it, and it will be fun to watch.”
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