SAN DIEGO (AP) — Brooks Koepka felt nerves he had not experienced in years. The swagger that was such a hallmark of his five major championships was replaced by concern about the reception he would get upon his return to the PGA Tour after nearly four years on Saudi-funded LIV Golf.
Koepka didn’t make a birdie until his final hole Thursday. He failed to break par on the tough South course at Torrey Pines in the Farmers Insurance Open.
And there was a small measure of relief.
“I’m just grateful to be out here and have a chance to compete with these guys,” Koepka said.
A large gallery followed him around on a glorious day along the Pacific bluffs with occasional shouts of, “Welcome back, Brooks.” On his way to the second tee, two young boys called out to him and Koepka walked over for fist bumps. He walked the entire 30 yards of a fence where fans wanted his autograph after his 1-over 73.
“I care about what everybody’s thinking out here, what everybody’s doing, and just trying to be as good of a person and good of a player as I can be,” Koepka said. “Just wanted a warm reception. Just like everybody else, you walk into a room, nobody wants to feel exiled. They just want to be loved.”
Koepka was freed from the final year of his nine-figure contract with LIV Golf on Dec. 23, applied for his PGA Tour membership about two weeks later and in three days was provided a path back.
The hard part was how he would be received. That’s what brought the relief, and a big smile even after a round in which he hit the ball cleanly and couldn’t buy a putt. The 8-footer for birdie on the 18th was the longest putt he made all day.
“I’m the only one in the entire world that’s going through this situation so it’s very difficult to explain,” Koepka said. “But I’m enjoying it, I really am.”
And now he has company, with former Masters champion Patrick Reed leaving LIV Golf with a chance to return to the PGA Tour as early as September. Koepka didn’t see that coming and only learned about it during his pro-am Wednesday.
“Yeah, it’s wild,” Koepka said. “Whatever Patrick wants to do and to be the best golfer he can be, best for his family, I’m in full support of that.”
Koepka said he felt nervous on the first tee, though it didn’t show. He piped his drive 301 yards at sea level into the fairway, one of his better iron shots of the day to 10 feet and missed his putt.
“I guess I should have been more nervous the rest of the round,” Koepka said.
The South course is among the strongest on the PGA Tour, producing more pars than any excitement. Koepka missed birdie chances on both par 5s on the front nine, and he made a sloppy bogey on the par-5 13th when his flip wedge up the steep hill to a flag he couldn’t see was too strong and went into the rough behind the green.
He was 11 shots behind Justin Rose, who had a 62 on the easier North course, and eight shots worse than Seamus Power, who had a 65 for the low score on the South.
“It’s been a while since I played competitive golf, so I like the way I’m playing,” said Koepka, who last played Oct. 5 at the Dunhill Links Championship in Scotland. “I just need to kind of play my way into it.”
His departure to LIV Golf in 2022 — one of the biggest surprises among the players who left the PGA Tour for the guaranteed Saudi riches — felt much longer ago. Koepka couldn’t recall if he heard any comments outside the ropes in Portland when he made his LIV debut.
And he wasn’t sure what to expect in San Diego.
“I don’t like thinking ahead at all or trying to anticipate what was going to happen, but I wasn’t sure, which is kind of weird being uneasy,” he said. “From the first tee on, it was great. It actually made me settle down a little bit. Like I said, it made me feel good just to be out here.”
Koepka is in the Phoenix Open next week. He is not in the $20 million signature events unless he qualifies. His return also stipulates a $5 million charity donation, no access to PGA Tour equity shares for five years, no FedEx Cup bonus money he might earn this year.
The tour also said whenever Koepka plays he will be added to the field to not take a spot from anyone. And then two more players get into tournaments on Monday of tournament week to make sure every group is a threesome.
The two beneficiaries this week were Jackson Suber and Lanto Griffin, a big deal to Griffin because Torrey Pines is his favorite course and he otherwise would not be in except for Koepka.
That led Griffin to say jokingly, “If Brooks really wants to create some goodwill, he should enter every tournament and then withdraw on Tuesday.”
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