Brooks Koepka, when asked Tuesday about the ongoing PGA Tour-LIV battle, answered each question in a way that would make a swing coach proud.
He was stable.
When it came to “politics” during a press conference two days before the start of Koepka’s first PGA Tour since announcing earlier this month that he was rejoining the circuit he left for a four-season stint with LIV, Koepka didn’t mince words.
Reporter: Should the PGA Tour invite more players from LIV?
Koepka: “I’m two days behind on this. I’m not trying to get into the politics of it all. I’m happy to have this opportunity and I’ve got to take it. That’s all I’m really focused on and getting back and playing golf.”
Reporter: Can the PGA Tour and LIV battle be settled?
Koepka: “I have no idea. I haven’t been part of the conversations on either side. It’s out of my hands and my job is to go play golf and do it on Thursday.”
On December 23, LIV and Koepka announced that he was leaving the league he joined in 2022 – and on January 12, the PGA Tour said Koepka was returning through the newly created “Returning Member Program,” a policy that is also open to three other LIV players (Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith) through their major championship wins over the past four years.
On Tuesday, Koepka said his family life was one of the biggest factors in his decision. And that was part of his response when asked if anyone at LIV had contacted him to discuss his return process.
“No one has picked my brain,” Koepka said. “I got some messages from the guys who are still in LIV, they’re reaching out. I think they understood the situation about what we were going through with my family, if the women have communication there. So I think everyone completely understands the situation that we were in probably more than everyone else. I don’t know how much has been made public.
“Yes, they understood that and wished me the best and to always do what’s best for you.”
Those players, he said, will also be what he misses the most in LIV.
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“I think maybe just being around guys, right, because we’re not — everybody’s not around each other all the time,” Koepka said. “We’re all one big traveling circus, right? It is. It’s fun and I’m going to miss some of those guys, seeing those guys almost week in and week out there. The relationships that I’ve built with those guys and not seeing them all the time, it’s going to be totally different.
“But at the same time, there’s a lot of people out here that I haven’t seen in four years and I don’t get to be around them as much, so I’m excited about that as well.”
Koepka was also asked about his recent slump in the majors — and whether LIV’s program played a role in it.
As of 2023, LIV has played 14 events per year. Here are Koepka’s highlights in that stretch:
–2023: tied for second (Masters), first (PGA Championship, his fifth major title), tied for 17th (US Open), tied for 64th (Open Championship)
–2024: tied for 45th (Masters), tied for 26th (PGA Championship), tied for 26th (US Open), tied for 43rd (Open Championship)
–2025: Missed cut (Masters), Missed cut (PGA Championship), Tied for 12th (US Open), Missed cut (Open Championship)
“It doesn’t matter, preparation,” Koepka said. “If you don’t play well those weeks, I mean, it’s tough, No. 1, to make a cut in a major, and then to win one is extremely difficult. Everything has to go right, the swings have to be right, you have to have a little bit of luck.
“If you’re just not playing — I mean, I just didn’t play well last year. I don’t think, maybe the end of ’24, I just wasn’t playing that well. So it’s hard — I’m not going to make any excuses other than I’m the one carrying the club, I’m the one who has to do everything and just do a good job.”
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