Brooks Koepka watches a shot during a U.S. Open practice session Tuesday at the Country Club.
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Brooks Koepka had no interest in the topic of the day.
He might have thought he would not be required to comment on Tuesday during US Open in Brookline, Massachusetts, but his views on all things Saudi Golf League didn’t extend beyond question #11. His brother, Chase, played in the first LIV Golf Invitational Series, a reporter pointed out, and what his thoughts were on the current landscape of professional golf?
“Obviously LIV is trying to make a big push for golf,” Koepka said. “Look, I mean, I love my brother. I support him in everything he does. It’s the family. I will always love and support him. Whatever he does, I encourage him.
Pressed by the subject, Koepka did not wish to discuss it further. He also accused the media (twice) of putting a “dark cloud” over the US Open by using players’ press conferences to ask them about the new Saudi-backed golf league, which completed his first event Saturday in England.
“I’m here. I’m here at the US Open,” said Koepka, who won the national championship twice. “I’m ready to play at the US Open, and I think it sucks too, you everyone throw this dark cloud over the US Open. It’s one of my favorite events. I don’t know why you keep doing this. The more legs you give it, the more you keep talking about it. (Collin Morikawa , who met with the media after Koepka, also called the LIV discussions a distraction.)
Monday, Phil Mickelson was unsurprisingly peppered with questions about LIV Golf, of which he has become the de facto face. Earlier Tuesday, Jon Rahm and Rory McIlroy were asked similar questions about the professional game’s disarray. McIlroy called it “the right thing to do” to become the game’s most prominent pro-PGA Tour spokesperson. Rahm provided one of the most thorough and thoughtful defenses to stay on the PGA Tour.
“Truth be told, I could retire now with what I’ve earned and live a very happy life and not play golf anymore,” Rahm said in one of his comments. “So I never really played golf for financial reasons. I play for the love of the game and I want to play against the best in the world. I’ve always been interested in history and legacy, and that’s what the PGA Tour currently offers.
Koepka was asked if the new league appealed to him because he could play fewer events and still (assuming that doesn’t change) play the majors, which he said are really the only things that matter to him. .
“I can come here and play as few weeks as I want,” he said. “I choose my own schedule, whatever tour I play.”
The lighter schedule has attracted some pros to LIV, but money has always been king – in business, in life, in professional golf. Some players have reportedly accepted huge offers to join the group. Koepka, when asked, said he hadn’t really thought about a number that might be enough to convince him to make the move.
“Really?” » replied a journalist.
“I don’t understand. I’m trying to focus on the US Open, man,” he said. “I legitimately don’t understand. I’m tired of the conversations. I’m tired of all this. Like I said, you’re all casting a dark cloud over the US Open. I think it sucks. In fact, I feel bad for them for once because it’s a half-hearted situation. We’re here to play and you talk about an event that happened last week.
Informed that there would be events in the near future, Koepka added: “I know, but you can’t drive a car by looking in the rearview mirror, can you?”
The press conference ended. The divide in golf is not going to happen anytime soon.
