I had literally just finished writing it.
After reading Coleman Bentley’s article in ‘Golf Digest’ earlier this month, one wherein he discussed Brooks Koepka’s contract situation with LIV – namely, the rumours swirling that not only was Koepka planning on not renewing his contract with the Saudi-backed venture come the end of the 2026 season, but according to the Sports Business Journal’s Josh Carpenter, Brooks was actually contemplating sitting out the entirety of the upcoming LIV season; a decision that would cost him $20 million, but leave him eligible to play all four Majors and DP Tour events, WHILST all the while seeing him conveniently serve out an outstanding 12-month suspension from the PGA Tour – I had proceeded to start writing an article where I looked at what Brooks would, hypothetically, offer as a free agent were he to part ways with LIV.
Well, after yesterday’s announcement, the ‘hypothetical’ bent to that question is no longer needed. Because it’s true. Brooks Koepka is leaving LIV Golf.
Naturally, your first instinct might be to posit that this could signify a distinct watershed moment in this golfing civil war; an ominous harbinger for the LIV chiefs as to further possible mutinies coming down the tracks. Alternatively, you could go down the route of using this whole story as a means through which to deliver a triumphant, “I told you so!”; the scathing indictment of the LIV project you’ve had locked and loaded since 2022.
But, as I did in that other article I’d written, I’m not going to do that.
Because, ultimately, we’re still left with that same question as to what exactly Brooks Koepka has to offer now that he’s turned his back on the LIV vision. And I don’t just mean that initial surge of interest that would invariably follow Koepka crossing that divide back over from LIV; one of their “big fish” swimming back across the river, so to say. There’s no value in that. It’s like watching two drunks fighting outside a nightclub – nothing more than merely cheap spectacle.
No, I want to look at what else Brooks brings to the table should he be allowed to return to the PGA or European tours – which, considering the somewhat icy statement released by the PGA Tour on the matter, isn’t necessarily a given at this stage. Because golf, like every sport, is about stars. It’s about that top-tier pool of talent that sell tickets, boost ratings, and capture the attention of both your seasoned and casual viewers alike.
And though there’s no denying that, whilst still playing on the PGA Tour, Koepka was firmly at that top table in terms of the most recognisable names on tour, to my mind, he was never someone I considered to be a ‘star’.
Just hear me out.
Yes, his performances and his wins made him undeniable as someone you had to speak about. And, yes, he was most certainly pushed as being the bright, new hope that could shoulder the expectations of American golf fans once Jordan Spieth’s efforts began to lose steam post-2017. But, for me, it never seemed to really click between Koepka and the fans as a whole. And the reason for that, I feel, is that trophies can only do so much in terms of endearing you to a fanbase. And it’s their opinion, ultimately, that dictates whether or not you’re a star.
Because, sure, being the one left getting your picture taken on the 18th green come Sunday will see you showered with plaudits and covers on ‘Golf Digest’. But that, in itself, does not endear you to the fans. It seems like it should. But it’s not. Instead, what it comes down to – and what it has always come down to – is simply the cult of personality. Tiger Woods didn’t become one of the most famous athletes in the world because of the number of titles he won. It’s because of how he won them. The attitude. The fist-pumping. The swagger. The audacity. He completely changed not only how the game was played, but how the game was viewed. And he accomplished that simply by what he did inside the ropes.
Therefore, where we see the limitations, I feel, with Brooks as an overall package, is that when I tried to think of a memorable highlight of his that I could remember off the top of my head, I found it easier to think of the drama he’s been involved in off the course as opposed to one solitary moment where he was swinging a golf club.
And that isn’t hyperbole for the sake of making an argument either. In the midst of doing my due diligence for this very piece, I watched two separate Koepka hype edits that people had made on YouTube just in case I happened to be blanking something glaringly obvious.
In the end, though, when I realised that the only thing I’d overlooked was the slightly more animated than usual fist-pump he pulled out after defending the PGA Championship in 2019, it just further solidified in my mind the fact that it really was far easier to think of that aforementioned ‘drama’ when it came to Brooks. The manufactured “beef” with DeChambeau. His run-ins with Mickelson. The ‘country club kids’ comment about certain PGA Tour players who criticised him for going to LIV. His public calling out of his own LIV teammate in Matt Wolff. Even earlier this year, when he publicly expressed his disappointment that LIV wasn’t further along in its progress from when he first joined – for, let’s not forget, a purported $100 million.
And it’s that imbalance, that disproportion between what good he offers you on the course – mainly, being a potential competitive foil to the more popular players – and that challenging side of his personality that, all at once, paints him as standoffish and disinterested, yet, at the same time, sees him courting drama under the guise of being blunt, that makes me think the prospect of Brooks Koepka returning to the ranks of the PGA Tour (if that is, indeed, his aim) is, I think, something that he’ll need more than what the chiefs in Ponte Vedra Beach will.
For, like it or not, the world kept turning on the PGA Tour without Brooks. People still came in through the gates. Ratings actually went up. And other players gratefully filled what would’ve been his tee-times and collected his would-be cheques. Because there is a very select group of players, one counting no more than how many you could fit into the backseat of my car, who you could class as being irreplaceable on the PGA Tour. And Brooks Koepka wasn’t one of them.
So, whatever happens from here? As per the statement from his representatives, I hope this time with his family will give Brooks a nice opportunity to reset, both physically and mentally. And whether or not he eventually chooses to plot a return to competitive golf or simply ride off into the sunset, whatever my opinion about his credentials as a bona fide star, there’s no denying Koepka’s talent as both a golfer and a competitor.
Because you don’t just stumble into winning five Majors.
It’s just that not all Major winners are created equal.
And therein lies Brooks’ problem.
