Tiger Woods is one of the best golfers to ever walk the planet but that hasn’t stopped players like Brooks Koepka claiming they can outdo the 15-time major winner.
Woods’ 15 major wins – capped by his comeback win at Augusta in 2019 – mean he is very much regarded as one of the greatest of all time, even though he has never quite caught Jack Nicklaus.
Indeed, only one other player – Walter Hagen – is in double figures, while the highest total majors won for currently active players is Phil Mickelson on six.
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However, just one behind Mickelson with five major wins is American star, Brooks Koepka. The LIV Golf ace has won five times, including two US Open titles, and very much goes under the radar at times.
But for Koepka, his talent is not in doubt and looking back at some comments from a few years ago, the 34-year-old feels he can very much outdo Woods’ record.
What Brooks Koepka said about beating Tiger Woods’ major record
Speaking in an interview back in 2021, Koepka exuded confidence as he discussed overtaking Woods in the major stakes.
And according to Koepka, it wasn’t something he doubted himself on either.
“In my mind, I’m going to catch him on majors. I believe that. I don’t see any reason that can stop me. I’m 31. I have another 14 years left,” Koepka said.
“If I win one a year, I got Jack. People misconstrue that as being cocky. No, that’s just my belief. If I don’t have that belief, I shouldn’t be out there. If you don’t think you can win, why the hell are you teeing it up?
“Yeah, I’m just going for second place this week. There’s a lot of that on Tour. Even elite players are very happy with that. Second? Sports are made to have a winner and a loser. You’re one or the other.”
Can Brooks Koepka get to 15 majors?
In terms of the comments from Koepka here, he is still on course to do what he said. He needs another ten, which means winning one a year for the next decade means he’d still be just 45 by the time he did it.
However, despite having time on his side, his move to LIV could scupper his chances.
Koepka will be able to play the PGA Championship for life after winning it three times, while his US Open exemption will take him to 2033.
But with no Masters win and no win at The Open, Koepka will be relying on an invite from the Augusta powers and qualifying for The Open over time as his world ranking tumbles.
That goes against him in terms of his quest to catch Tiger. However, he could very much do it, and if he managed to get into double figures, it would be some achievement.
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