Koepka eager for return to PGA Tour; concerned about reception
SAN DIEGO — Brooks Koepka has been released from the final year of his contract with LIV Golf, which is funded by Saudi Arabia, and the first person he reached out to was Tiger Woods. Three weeks later, the PGA Tour established a route for his return, beginning at Torrey Pines.
Koepka expressed on Tuesday his eagerness for the week to conclude due to the heightened attention. The appreciation of rejoining the PGA Tour comes with a level of nerves that the five-time major champion seldom feels—concern about others’ perceptions of him.
“It feels a bit different,” he stated ahead of the Farmers Insurance Open, marking his first non-major event on the PGA Tour since his quarterfinal loss at the Match Play in March 2022. “I’m definitely feeling a bit more anxious this week just coming back. But it feels good. I’m incredibly thankful to be back.”
Koepka mentioned his desire to be closer to family as his primary reason for leaving LIV. His wife revealed in early October that she had experienced a pregnancy loss at 16 weeks.
Woods played a significant role in facilitating Koepka’s return, along with other player-directors on the PGA Tour board who collaborated with CEO Brian Rolapp to devise a plan for select players to come back. Koepka is the first player to defect from LIV, and it came at a cost.
He is making a $5 million charitable donation (the specifics are still to be determined with the tour), will not receive any FedEx Cup bonus money this year, and has no access to equity shares in the PGA Tour for five years, a value the tour has estimated at over $50 million.
Additionally, he cannot participate in the $20 million signature events until he qualifies independently.
“I suppose it’s a fresh start for me, which is nice,” Koepka remarked. “It’s just another chapter in my story. I’m looking forward to that. I feel like my game is in fairly good condition, and I want to see where it stands. Obviously, this week is a bit different. I would just like to get through this week and feel like I can start playing golf again.”
Woods has never considered joining LIV and criticized those who did, stating, “They’ve turned their back on what has allowed them to get to this position,” a month after LIV’s inception. He is now the leading player representative on the PGA Tour board.
Koepka mentioned that he has always maintained a positive relationship with Woods. Furthermore, he had never met Rolapp, who had been in his role for only six months. Commissioner Jay Monahan, who attended Koepka’s wedding a month before Koepka’s departure to LIV in 2022, would have been next on his list.
“I felt like Tiger was someone I had relied on in the past for guidance and how to handle situations, and I thought that was perhaps the most comfortable call for me,” Koepka explained.
Woods has been among several players who endorsed the decision to allow Koepka back, asserting that it strengthened the PGA Tour and would ultimately enhance value for players receiving equity shares. “It’s a win for everyone,” Woods stated earlier this month.
Scottie Scheffler, the world’s top-ranked player who shares the same manager as Koepka, also supported the decision.
“I think it’s positive to have someone back on tour who wants to return,” Scheffler remarked last week. “Brooks had a strong desire to come back to the tour. In recent months, he certainly expressed a significant wish to return, and I’m pleased that Brian and the team, along with the board, were able to find a way for him to come back and start competing here again.”
It remains to be seen, either at Torrey Pines or next week at the Phoenix Open, how golf fans will react to a player who left the PGA Tour after the 2022 U.S. Open for a rival league offering substantial signing bonuses. Koepka had previously confirmed that his was “nine figures.”
“Perhaps I’m a bit anxious about that too, just to see how the fans will respond,” Koepka admitted. “I hope they are excited. I hope they are pleased that I’m out here.”
Koepka could not recall the last time he attended a tournament on a Monday, aside from the majors. Just arriving in the parking lot was such a blur that he does not remember whom he first encountered. There were embraces with Billy Horschel and Harris English on the range.
Then it was off to the South Course to play the back nine. He played alongside rookie Marcelo Rozo. Joining them on the 18th tee were Akshay Bhatia and Matti Schmid, neither of whom were on the PGA Tour when Koepka departed. Nearly half of the field in the Wednesday pro-am did not even possess PGA Tour cards when Koepka left.
“There are many new faces,” Koepka noted. “But I’m excited to meet those guys and feel like I’m part of the tour.”
He returns to a PGA Tour undergoing significant transformations. Woods leads the Future Competition Committee, which is reconfiguring the schedule to ensure that every event feels significant. There are 11 tournaments with prize money of at least $20 million, excluding the four majors.
Is it better than when he left?
“I’m just two days in,” Koepka replied with a smile.
Justin Rose addressed that for him last week when asked about Koepka’s return.
“We’ve all gained from this upheaval in one way or another,” Rose stated. “It’s been beneficial for tour players in the sense that the powers that be have pushed a bit harder in our favor regarding equity in the tour and prize funds.
“However, we need a premium product,” he added. “And this is the first time we’ve had someone who truly moves the needle come back our way.”
