HONOLULU — Brooks Koepka is expecting a nervous energy when he returns to a regular PGA Tour event for the first time in four years at the Farmers Insurance Open.
Only some of that pertains to his golf.
How he is received — inside and outside the ropes — remains to be seen as the first player to be invited back to the PGA Tour after taking Saudi riches to defect to the LIV Golf League in 2022.
“I’ve got a lot of work to do with some of the players,” Koepka said in a telephone interview Monday. “There’s definitely guys who are happy, and definitely guys who will be angry. It’s a harsh punishment financially. I understand exactly why the tour did that — it’s meant to hurt. But it [his departure] hurt a lot of people.
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“If anyone is upset, I need to rebuild those relationships.”
Koepka was allowed back under a one-time Returning Member Program that the PGA Tour board developed and approved last week. It applies only to players who have won a major or the Players Championship since 2022.
The penalty is a $5 million contribution to a charity the tour will help decide, no access to FedEx Cup bonus money in 2026, no sponsor exemptions to the $20 million signature events and, most importantly, no equity grants in the PGA Tour for the next five years.
The PGA Tour estimates, based on Koepka performing at the level allowed to win five majors, that the financial repercussions could be worth anywhere from $50 million to $85 million.
“There was no negotiating,” Koepka said about his conversation last week with Brian Rolapp, the CEO of PGA Tour Enterprises. “It’s meant to hurt — it does hurt — but I understand. It’s not supposed to be an easy path. There’s a lot of people that were hurt by it when I left, and I understand that’s part of coming back.”
For those not happy to see him return, Koepka said he looks forward to having private conversations outside the media.
“The first week I’ll be a little bit nervous,” Koepka said. “There’s a lot going on than just golf. I’ll be glad to put the first week behind me — dealing with the media, dealing with the players, and then getting some of those tougher conversations. But I’m looking forward to it.
“Am I nervous? Yes. Am I excited? Yes. In a weird way, I want to have those conversations.”
What They’re Saying
How some PGA Tour players are viewing Brooks Koepka’s return:Billy Horschel: “I’m not shocked. I figured there would be a path back for these guys. … For PGA Tour players who hold some animosity, who want to see some skin, this hopefully gives them what they want. And at the same time, it shows (LIV) guys there’s a price you have to pay to come back.”Gary Woodland: “I’m in a tough spot because I’m friends with Brooks. A lot of guys are friends with Brooks out here. A couple of years ago, there was a lot more hostility between the two tours. That’s gone down. I’m happy for Brooks. I’m happy for the tour that we’re finally getting to the point of moving past all this crap and getting back to golf.”Brian Harman: “Like most guys, when you hear he’s coming back, your first instinct is to be upset. But I think the punishment is real. It’s not a free pass back into perfectly good graces. … Your main thing is, ‘Where’s the one-year suspension? Where’s the time served?’ I think that will be the hardest hurdle for PGA Tour players to get over. But $5 million is a lot.”Jordan Spieth: “The punishment, no one knows exactly what it is until you see what happens with what the growth of equity becomes going forward. Could it end up being close to what he went to LIV for? Maybe. Probably not. But regardless, it’s substantial enough that if he were to play well, then it would still be a penalty.”– The Associated Press
Jordan Spieth said Koepka just needed to be the same person who left.
“You’re not going to ask somebody to change to please other people,” Spieth said. “I don’t think he needs to play Monday pro-ams or walk along the range and shake everyone’s and say, ‘I’m sorry.’ He just comes back and plays really good golf. That’s good for everybody.”
The board, led by a majority of players, signed off on the plan. Koepka talked with Rolapp by phone Thursday evening, and he was at PGA Tour headquarters the next morning unaccompanied. He came in through a side entrance.
The 35-year-old Koepka, who is exempt the next three years from his 2023 victory in the PGA Championship at Oak Hill, will return at Torrey Pines on Jan. 29. He also said he would play the WM Phoenix Open, where he won his first PGA Tour title in 2015 and won again in 2021.
That might provide the first real test of how the public feels — a Saturday afternoon on the 16th hole of the TPC Scottsdale, the rowdiest in golf even for players the fans don’t really know.
“I can handle it,” Koepka said. “I enjoy the crowd, and hopefully everybody is happy to see me. They can’t be mad at me forever.”
So why the change?
Word first began to circulate in November that negotiations between Koepka and LIV Golf — he had one year left on his contract — were not going well. He had publicly complained last summer that LIV was not as far along as he would have liked.
And then Dec. 23 came the announcement from LIV of an “amicable” split, and Koepka reapplied for PGA Tour membership.
Koepka cited a knee injury that has taken a toll on his body and the desire to spend more time with his family as the reasons to join LIV. He cited the need to spend more time at home when he left LIV, particularly after his wife had a miscarriage last fall.
“I needed to be there with my family over the last few months. I needed to be closer to home,” Koepka said. “I was able to get out of the LIV contract, everything lined up perfectly and I was able to get back on tour.
“I’m happy and grateful it was able to come to this.”
Koepka has not spoken publicly about how much he was offered to play for LIV, except for saying it was nine figures on a 2023 podcast with boxer Jake Paul. Also unclear was how much he had to pay back by leaving one year early.
Now it’s about playing again on familiar turf with players he saw only four times a year at the majors. He is close with several players who live in South Florida. Others he will see for the first time in the locker room, on the range, on the first tee.
“There’s probably a mixed bag of ‘We’re happy you’re back, welcome home’ to ‘You shouldn’t be here.’ I understand everybody’s point of view,” Koepka said. “I was going to be sitting out possibly a year, and I’m extremely thankful the tour gave me this opportunity.”
