{"id":576938,"date":"2026-04-11T00:35:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-11T00:35:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/576938\/"},"modified":"2026-04-11T00:35:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-11T00:35:09","slug":"the-masters-2026-brooks-koepka-bounces-back-after-mystery-driver-setting-switch","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/576938\/","title":{"rendered":"The Masters 2026: Brooks Koepka bounces back after mystery driver-setting switch"},"content":{"rendered":"

AUGUSTA, Ga. \u2013 Brooks Koepka doesn\u2019t usually struggle with the big stick, but during Thursday\u2019s opening round of the Masters, Koepka found himself at odds with his driver.<\/p>\n

Koepka missed the fairway with six of his first seven driver swings, all of which faded more off his intended line than normal. He eventually adjusted to the right miss to find seven fairways and shoot even-par 72.<\/p>\n

When Koepka got back on the range Thursday evening, that\u2019s when he discovered that the 16-setting SureFit hosel on his Titleist GT3 driver had somehow been switched from its standard A1 to B1, which applies a fade bias. \u201cNo one noticed it,\u201d Koepka said. USGA rules allow modifications to clubs between rounds, just not during rounds, so Koepka was able to fix the mistake prior to Friday\u2019s second round.<\/p>\n

The results, especially off the tee, were much better, as Koepka posted a 3-under 69 with six birdies to rise into red numbers at 3 under.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf anything happens you just got to let it roll off your back and go with it and keep fighting,\u201d Koepka said. \u201cI feel like I\u2019ve done a good job of that. Three-putted the first hole twice, so proud of that; proud of the way I\u2019ve bounced back every day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Koepka\u2019s resolve spans more than just these past two days. After finding his groove in his return to the PGA Tour from LIV \u2013 T-9 at Cognizant, T-13 at The Players, T-18 at Valspar \u2013 Koepka missed the cut two weeks ago in Houston. The iron play, which has been exceptional most of the year (he still ranks second on Tour in strokes gained approach), wasn\u2019t statistically great in the two rounds at Memorial Park while the putter continued to misfire for the five-time major winner. Koepka, though, wasn\u2019t totally discouraged, at least with the ball-striking.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

McIlroy is primed for his second consecutive win at Augusta National.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven after the missed cut, I was hitting it really good,\u201d Koepka said. \u201cJust got overly aggressive. Kind of was hitting it too good, and then you think you can take on everything, and you can\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n

Koepka missed just four greens in regulation on Friday, and though his short game was, in his words, \u201ciffy,\u201d he did sink some crucial putts, including an 18-foot par save from just off the green at the par-4 17th. Two holes earlier, he clocked a flop shot from right of the green nearly off the back of the green, but ended up making another momentum-saving putt, that time from 8 feet.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a good kind of momentum builder I guess going into tomorrow,\u201d Koepka said of the late saves. \u201cMakes you feel good.\u201d<\/p>\n

Koepka was also asked about comments made by Tom Watson on Thursday morning. Koepka didn\u2019t hear what Watson said, though he was given the spark notes.<\/p>\n

Watson said, \u201cI thought the LIV players, when they left, they were supposed to be banned for life. If I was commissioner, that\u2019s what I would do. I\u2019d say if you\u2019re finished with your contract with LIV Golf, if you want to play the PGA Tour again, you come back, and you must play the Korn Ferry Tour for a year to qualify for it.\u201d Koepka, who officially rejoined the Tour in late January at the Farmers Insurance Open, was simply told by a reporter, \u201cHe doesn\u2019t believe you should be on the PGA Tour this year.\u201d<\/p>\n

Koepka responded, \u201cThat\u2019s fine if he thinks that. \u2026 I\u2019m just grateful to be out here. The people that make those decisions let me out here. If you\u2019re going to get the opportunity to come back out, you\u2019re going to take it.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"scottie-masters-fourth-hole.jpg\"<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

The two-time Masters winner found the water on a pair of par-5s during his second nine at Augusta on Friday, signing his highest-scoring round since 2023.<\/p>\n

Koepka hasn\u2019t won a major since the 2023 PGA Championship. At the Masters, he\u2019s twice finished runner-up, in 2019 and 2023, but he\u2019s also missed two of his past four cuts and tied for 45th last year. After four seasons with LIV, Koepka has talked these past few months about being reinvigorated. Walking a few holes with his dad, Bob, on Friday morning around Augusta National confirmed as much. Bob Koepka recalled some stories of taking Brooks to the Masters as a kid, including when Phil Mickelson declined an 8-year-old Brooks an autograph request. In some ways, that same kid was out there on Friday, flushing shots and rising up the leaderboard.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m just enjoying it a whole lot more,\u201d Koepka, now 35, said. \u201cI think there is a huge difference of I\u2019m excited to come out and play every week. It is just overall, if your happiness is through the roof off the golf course and on the golf course, it\u2019s really tough to beat it. You\u2019re going enjoy every day, everything you\u2019re doing.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"AUGUSTA, Ga. \u2013 Brooks Koepka doesn\u2019t usually struggle with the big stick, but during Thursday\u2019s opening round of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":576939,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[71],"tags":[427,99],"class_list":{"0":"post-576938","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-golf","8":"tag-golf","9":"tag-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/576938","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=576938"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/576938\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/576939"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=576938"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=576938"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=576938"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}