Brooks Koepka is so close to returning to the winners’ circle on the PGA Tour.
Koepka’s ball-striking has been truly exceptional since he returned to the PGA Tour from LIV Golf, but his putting has let him down badly.
In fact, the 36-year-old is ranked 3rd in strokes gained approach and 141st in strokes gained putting.
Brooks Koepka has made seven cuts from 10 events so far this season, but he only has one top-10 finish to his name.
The five-time major champion finished in a tie for 55th at the PGA Championship last week after he played his final two holes of the tournament on three-over par.
Koepka’s poor putting prevented him from contending at the PGA last week and he will be desperate to address that moving forward.
Brooks Koepka admits he made a ‘stupid’ error at the PGA Championship
Koepka has been paired with Scottie Scheffler at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson in McKinney, Texas, this week.
And he will be hopeful of getting back in the saddle quickly after his poor finish on Sunday at Aronimink.
Koepka spoke to reporters on Wednesday ahead of the start of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, and opened up on changing putters this week.
“I think it’s one I’ve had. I might have — I was just with Blake, my agent, and Ricky, and they said I might have used in Singapore maybe last year, two years ago. I’ve used it before,“ he said.
“Yeah, it’s something that just feels good in my hands. I feel like I’ve struggled with the toe release a little bit, kind of fighting that, kind of holding it off, and this putter seems to have a little bit more toe hang, to get kind of scientific with it or more in depth on it.
“It’s got a bit more toe hang than what I have been using all year, kind of similar to the blade. I know the CG’s up closer to the front of the face, which is kind of what I’m looking for.“
Then Koepka admitted that his putting problems have seeped into other areas of his game.
“Hopefully I can just find some confidence with it and build some momentum off of it,“ he said.
“I think I look back at last week, which I’m very kind of annoyed with because I kind of let the last couple holes get away from me just from maybe a little bit of anger or annoyance, maybe more of an annoyance thing, of not making any putts and feeling like you’ve got to go at flags.
“I had no business going at that flag on 17. Aiming right at it was stupid.
“Hopefully I can just find some momentum with it and really kind of start building the groundwork and work my way up from there.“
Why Brooks Koepka’s poor putting affects approach play
That’s the problem players have when they feel like they can’t buy a putt.
They start taking more aggressive lines with their approaches because they feel like they need to hit their shots within three feet to actually make a birdie.
And it’s the main reason why putting issues often prove to be so disruptive to players’ entire games.
This week feels like an important one for Brooks Koepka.
If he manages to get off to a good start on the greens at the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, it may well give him the confidence he needs to win on the PGA Tour again.
