Brooks Koepka went into the final day at the 2023 Masters Tournament with a two-stroke lead over playing partner Jon Rahm. On the brink of winning his fifth major, the LIV Golf star struggled on the final day and watched as Rahm and Phil Mickelson surpassed him.
Koepka, age 32, was on the brink of history. He would’ve become just the 20th golfer in PGA history to win five majors, it also would’ve been his first win at the Masters. Instead, the former PGA Player of the Year (2018-’19), shot a three-over-par and finished second.
- Brooks Koepka major wins: PGA Championship (2018-’19), U.S. Open (2017-’18)
Speaking to reporters after the tournament, Koepka voiced strong frustrations about the slow pace of play by the group ahead of him led by Patrick Cantlay and Viktor Hovland.
“The group in front of us was brutally slow. Jon went to the bathroom like seven times during the round, and we were still waiting,”
Brooks Koepka on the pace of play on the finaly day of the 2023 Masters Tournament
The final round proved to be especially challenging for Koepka. He opened with three bogeys on the first nine holes and didn’t record a birdie until the 13th hole. While he followed that up with birdies on the 14th and 17th holes, six bogies on the day resulted in a three-over-par on the scorecard.
As a result, he tied with Mickelson (-7) and finished four strokes behind Rahm. While the pace of play seemed to have an influence on Koepka, Rahm (-3) was his playing partner. Despite encountering the same slow speeds and going to the bathroom multiple times, Rahm made four birdies with only one bogey.
Cantlay responded to Koepka’s comments after the Masters, telling reporters that the group in front of him was slower and he imagines it was the same for everyone playing at Augusta National.
“Yeah, I mean, we finished the first hole, and the group in front of us was on the second tee when we walked up to the second tee, and we waited all day on pretty much every shot. We waited in 15 fairway, we waited in 18 fairway. I imagine it was slow for everyone.”
Patrick Cantlay on Brooks Koepka’s criticisms of his slow play
Koepka has been vocal in the past about slow pace bothering him, most famously comments that seemed to target Bryson DeChambeau in 2019. Given other golfers expressed some frustration with the pace of play and there is evidence to suggest some were playing slow, it’s possible it becomes an area of improvement for the future.
Related: Golfers with the most majors