Brooks Koepka hopes his injury worries are in the past, saying he feels in top shape ahead of the Masters.
The four-time Major winner was atop the Official World Golf Rankings exactly a year ago but forced to spend more than three months on the sidelines following a knee problem.
His eventual return also didn’t last long and he suffered a down-spiraling 2020 season with further damage to his knee and a hip injury that ultimately forced him to withdraw from the FedEx Cup playoffs.
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But, the 30-year-old from Florida is eager to get back to his best and what better way to do than by winning a Green Jacket.
‘Everything’s fine. I feel normal and the knee feels good. Hip, I haven’t had an issue with. Nice to have those two months rehabbing in San Diego and getting everything straightened away. Vegas was more just see how everything holds up and see where I’m at and it felt good. So, finally it feels nice,’ Koepka said at Augusta National.
The American came agonisingly close to winning last year’s Masters but had to settle for T2 in the end as Tiger Woods claimed a famous victory.
He is, however, expecting a tough challenge in Georgia and with some bad weather rolling in, Koepka believes the course could force players’ hands slightly.
‘I don’t know how it’s going to be with the rain. It looks like it’s going to rain the next few days, so it could play a little softer. Who knows what the wind is going to do with the storm moving through.
‘It could be playing quite difficult, just with the wind, being a little softer, the ball, instead of maybe bouncing up on the flat, it might be just on the upslope. Might be a little bit different,’ he added.
Koepka also believes his way of playing and sticking to his strengths should be the way forward for him, instead of changing certain aspects.
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‘I’ve never tinkered with things, and stick with what you know. The beginning of the year, I was getting fitted for it and my body wasn’t right, so I couldn’t do the things I wanted to do. I was like, hey, I’m playing well, see where it goes, numbers look good.
‘But it’s a different game when you’re hitting on the range versus when you get out on the course and what you see.’
