Brooks Koepka ‘good to go’ for Ryder Cup

Four-time Major winner Brooks Koepka says he is ready to play at the Ryder Cup, even as former US captain Paul Azinger questioned his commitment.

Koepka pulled out of the US PGA Tour Championship this month after hurting his left wrist hitting out of the rough.

But in comments to Golf Week on Wednesday, he said he would be ready to tee it up in the USA vs Europe match-play showdown at Whistling Straits next week.

“I’ll be there. I’m good to go,” he told the magazine via text message. “I’m feeling good. Been doing my rehab, doing everything I need to do to be ready for the Cup. I’ll be there ready to play.”

But Koepka had raised eyebrows with comments in a Golf Digest interview in which he indicated the team format of the Ryder Cup might not be for him.

“It’s a bit odd, if I’m honest,” Koepka told the magazine of Ryder Cup week. “I don’t want to say it’s a bad week. We’re just so individualised, and everybody has their routine and a different way of doing things, and now, it’s like, OK, we have to have a meeting at this time or go do this or go do that.

“There are times where I’m like, I won my match. I did my job. What do you want from me?

“I know how to take responsibility for the shots I hit every week. Now, somebody else hit a bad shot and left me in a bad spot, and I know this hole is a loss. That’s new, and you have to change the way you think about things.”

While many Ryder Cup players are enthusiastic about the chance to play as a team for a change, Koepka seemed to bemoan the fact that the structure is “so far from my normal routine”.

Azinger, who captained the United States to victory in the 2008 Ryder Cup, had no time for that attitude, when he spoke to reporters on an NBC Sports/Golf Channel conference call.

“Brooks, when I just read that article, I’m not sure he loves the Ryder Cup that much,” Azinger said. “If he doesn’t love it, he should relinquish his spot and get people there who do love the Ryder Cup.”

But Koepka indicated to Golf Week that nothing could be further from his mind.

He said he had been in touch with current US captain Steve Stricker as he resumed practising.

“The captain and vice-captains have been informed every step of the way and know I’ll be ready to go,” Koepka told the magazine.

Photo: EPA/Justin Lane