Brooks Koepka has made his first start since his return to the PGA Tour, with the five-time major champion finishing tied for 56th at the Farmers Insurance Open this past week.
All eyes were on Brooks Koepka at Torrey Pines this past week. It had been known for a little while that the 35-year-old would be making his return to the PGA Tour at the Farmers Insurance Open.
What are your takes from Brooks Koepka’s first showing back on the PGA Tour?
Are you more or less encouraged that he can compete in 2026
Koepka does not have the best record at Torrey Pines over the course of his career. And given his form on LIV in 2025, it was always going to be a big ask to expect him to contend at the third event of the season.
Nevertheless, Koepka was firmly in the spotlight this past week.
Brooks Koepka springs a surprise at the Farmers Insurance Open
It will be fascinating to see how Koepka performs over the coming months. It would clearly be a huge boost to the PGA Tour if he could find a way back to his best. He is one of the finest competitors the game has seen.
And it seems that his outlook has changed since he was previously on the PGA Tour. Speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, Rex Hoggard suggested that he was taken aback by Koepka’s demeanour ahead of his return.
“I think the positive was, first, the press conference on Tuesday. He won the press conference, we use it all the time when talking about football coaches, but I do believe Brooks sat in that chair and did what he had to do. He took the hard questions and showed a level of contrition that I admitted I didn’t think he had,” he said.
“Let’s face it, the player that left the PGA Tour in 2022, I don’t think anybody was going to say is contrite. I didn’t think that was going to be one of the 14 clubs in his bag, and he did a really good job in that press conference and the rest of the week.
“He had a really good interview with Todd Lewis following his round on Thursday. I think some of the things he said following his round on Thursday were even more interesting.
“He was asked point blank why he was nervous for that first round. And it was really because, ‘I care, because I care about not just playing well, not just being back on the PGA Tour, but I care about what people think about me’. That’s not the guy that left the PGA Tour.”
How Koepka performed on a mixed week at Torrey Pines
There were definitely some positive signs from Koepka’s performance at Torrey Pines.
He gained shots on the field with his approach play and around the green, but he struggled off the tee and on the putting surfaces.
| Category | Brooks Koepka’s strokes gained per round |
| Off the tee | -0.77 |
| Approach | 0.99 |
| Around the green | 0.63 |
| Putting | -0.31 |
| Total | 0.54 |
Koepka admitted to having no confidence in his putting on the poa annua greens. And that was reflected in his scoring where he struggled to make the most of some of the opportunities he gave himself.
The good news is that he heads to the WM Phoenix Open with reason for optimism. He has won at TPC Scottsdale twice before.
It would be quite something if he could add a third victory in the coming days.
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