Brooks Koepka fires ominous five-year warning to rivals following opening round of Abu Dhabi Championship
If any of his rivals expect Brooks Koepka to at least take the briefest of pauses for reflection after winning four out of the past 10 majors in which he has played, they should perhaps avoid the comments the world No 1 made following a first-round 66 here on Thursday.
“I’ve told my team, I want to rededicate myself for the next five years and really put my stamp on the game,” the American said, after a bogeyless beginning to the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship that thoroughly belied his competitive inaction for three months.
That is a terrifying proposition. Not only has Koepka completed his quartet in such a short period, but he has also racked up two runner-up finishes as well. And after this ominous opening, the 29-year-old revealed he was nowhere near his best when going 2-1-2-4 in the 2019 majors.
Koepka might have not played competitively since October, because of a knee complaint that required stem-cell surgery, but he has not been fit since the end of 2017.
“Last year, I just couldn’t practise,” Koepka said. “My left knee was too painful and I wasn’t being able to do the things I wanted to. I couldn’t put any weight on it. I usually play the week before a major and, if not before, for the Open and the Masters then at least get there a few days before. I couldn’t do that.”
Koepka is sure he can improve and coach Pete Cowen agrees. “There is so much more to come from him,” the Yorkshireman said. Cowen concentrates on Koepka’s short game and still only rates him a six out of 10. That mark might seem odd for all those who witnessed his stunning chip-in from the back of the 17th, but these are high standards they are talking about.
“What people sometimes forget about Brooks is that he has only been on the European Tour for six years and the PGA Tour for five years,” Cowen said. “He is not nearly at his peak and he knows it. Experts say he is calm when he comes down the stretch in the majors, but that just comes from confidence. Put it this way, someone has to play very special to knock him off his perch in the next half-decade.”
Are you listening, Rory McIlroy? The world No 2 could leapfrog Koepka if he wins his seasonal opener in San Diego next week and Koepka finishes outside the top 50 here, but the latter must be considered extremely doubtful after the consummate display of control. To think, Koepka started this week by losing a friendly nine-hole to a 15-year-old, Josh Hill, on this very course. That rust was well and truly shaken off.
“I’m pretty pleased,” Koepka said, with characteristic indifference. “But I’ve kind of known I’ve been hitting it really well, putting it really well, for a couple weeks. I think the first day I picked up the club, I felt like I hadn’t had any time off. I’ve done this for years and years. You don’t forget how to swing the golf club.”
Hill will certainly never forget his first experience in a top-level tournament, particularly the start. The English schoolboy, who is based in Dubai, birdied the first, the tricky 409-yarder, and also birdied the 18th. There were a few lapses in between but, on two over par, the 6ft 3in amateur is only a few shots off the cut mark.
On a perfect desert day, South Africa’s Shaun Norris and Italy’s Renato Paratore led the way on eight under, with two shots back to Koepka and Australian Jason Scrivener in a tie for third and Spain’s Sergio Garcia in the group on five under.
