Brooks Koepka shares his wife's feelings after 'pathetic' PGA Tour comeback

Brooks Koepka braved the wind and rain as he set about putting a "pathetic" PGA Tour season behind him. The five-time major champion returns to competition at the Irish Open on Thursday on a sponsor's invite after a three-week break since failing to make the FedEx Cup playoffs. Koepka's comeback since quitting LIV Golf has been decidedly underwhelming; he finished the season with just one top-10 finish, and he was a peripheral figure in the majors. He did not hold back in his brutal self-assessment after his PGA Tour season ended at the Wyndham Championship last month, when he said he needed to "completely reevaluate everything" in his game. • Jon Rahm issues blunt response to LIV Golf question in clear giveaway at Irish Open • Scottie Scheffler revealed his true personality in Amanda Balionis interview cut by CBS First, he opted for a "reset," jetting to The Bahamas. Four thousand miles from the golden sands of the Caribbean, the scene at Trump International Golf Links in Doonbeg on the opposite side of the Atlantic was very different as he took up residence on the range. The horizontal rain sweeping from County Clare's rugged, dramatic coastline was a fitting symbol for the state of Koepka's game. But he appeared reenergized as he completed an extensive session under the watchful eye of revered coach Pete Cowen. Their work focused on his club path, with caddie Ricky Elliott — a Portrush native fully familiar with the elements in this part of the world — dutifully holding an alignment stick in front of Koepka to ensure his swing was on plane. Koepka and Cowen went back and forth on feels, turf interaction, and more over the course of at least an hour. Koepka wants to make significant changes to his game, but he continues to work with longtime coach Pete Cowen -Credit:Iron and wedge play are not Koepka's biggest problems, though; he was one of the PGA Tour's best players from tee to green this season. Instead, it is his putter that continues to haunt him. He trialed different options this season to try to arrest his woes on the greens, but he has returned to a Scotty Cameron blade, variants of which he used in all of his major triumphs. Is he getting the desired results? "It's hard to tell. It's just practice," he told Mirror U.S. Sports in trademark no-nonsense fashion. "You can't really get a feel for it until the competition. But, everything feels like it's going in the right direction. I'm just trying to stay positive. I still believe I can go win any week, any day, any tournament. But when you're putting like that and it's holding you back, it's very tough to win. You've just got to deal with it and move on and make some changes." Koepka was burned by being reduced to also-ran status with his PGA Tour return. On the course, he built his reputation as a fearsome competitor with a penchant for delivering his best in the big ones. That reputation has waned since his last major victory, the 2023 PGA Championship, and it stings. At home, however, life is much better for quitting LIV and spending more time in the U.S. Leading up to his exit from the breakaway league and its globetrotting schedule, Koepka and his wife, Jena Sims, were coming to terms with the grief of a miscarriage. They share a three-year-old son, Crew. A return to an American-heavy schedule on the PGA Tour has been just what the family needed. "I've had a blast. It's been a bunch of fun," he said. "Everybody's happy. My wife's happy, I'd say my son's happy, and I'm happy, so that's all that matters." Crew has shown a tentative interest in golf, but right now, monster trucks and fast cars are the craze. "He hits it around a little bit," Koepla said. "I think more when he sees me prep for an event or my clubs kind of sitting by the front door for a day. Knowing I'm going to leave, he likes to play a little bit more. He enjoys it. We've got a warehouse. He goes over there and knocks the ball around and just enjoys being around it, I guess. "I would say he's not too interested in sports right now. Everything is Hot Wheels, Monster Jam, anything car-related, he's pretty into. And airplanes. So I just let him pick. I'm not going to force anything down his throat." Koepka has relished the chance to spend more time with his loved ones -Credit:More time at home does not mean an empty calendar for the 36-year-old. He will play at least two more events on the DP World Tour this year — the BMW PGA Championship and the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship — but he is undecided whether he will play in any of the PGA Tour's fall series events. He has also signed up for the next season of TGL, joining expansion team Motor City Golf Club. The simulator league's arena is a short drive from Koepka's Florida home, and he said it was a no-brainer to pledge his Monday and Tuesday nights in the new year. "I felt comfortable when I met with [TGL]. It's something to do. It's close by, and I think if you kind of look at it, the guys who have played well over the last little bit have played in it," he said. "I don't know if there's an advantage to it or not. But it seems like something fun, something I'm interested in. I think it will be a cool experience."