LA JOLLA, CALIFORNIA | As the late January sun glistened off the Pacific Ocean on a cloudless, 70-degree Tuesday, Torrey Pines was practically showing off in advance of the Farmers Insurance Open that begins Thursday.
While much of the country shivers and digs out of winter’s most recent and enduring blast, this spot of southern California clifftops and seaside is – at least for the next few days – a spectacular stage for the most anticipated moment of this still young season.
At 9:32 a.m. PST Thursday, Brooks Koepka will begin his first PGA Tour event since 2022, playing alongside Ludvig Åberg and Max Homa on Torrey Pines’ South Course. It’s been less than three weeks since Koepka was allowed to rejoin the PGA Tour after his three years at LIV Golf and if the expectations for his performance are muted, the interest level is not.
“I think it feels a little bit different. I’m definitely a little bit more nervous this week just coming back. But it feels good. I’m super grateful to be back,” Koepka said Tuesday morning in his first media session since rejoining the tour.
Koepka seems vulnerable as he approaches the Farmers Insurance Open. If Koepka is not vulnerable, he is at least a little uncomfortable as he reconnects not only with players he hasn’t seen in a while but having the eyes and ears of the game leaning in to see how he handles his public re-entry to the PGA Tour.
No one has done what Koepka is doing. Others may follow but, for the moment, he is the one and only.
It’s a little like returning to work at a place you’d been before, left for a better offer and then decided what you had was pretty good to begin with. In fact, it’s almost exactly that.
Familiarity with Torrey Pines and dozens of players who were there when Koepka left and are here for his return smooths the path but this is a first-of-its-kind moment. For all of the self-confidence and swagger that defined his five major championship victories, Koepka seems vulnerable as he approaches the Farmers Insurance Open.
If Koepka is not vulnerable, he is at least a little uncomfortable as he reconnects not only with players he hasn’t seen in a while but having the eyes and ears of the game leaning in to see how he handles his public re-entry to the PGA Tour.
Part of it is because of his five major championship victories. The other part, perhaps the bigger part, is because Koepka took LIV Golf’s millions then decided to pay whatever it cost to return to the PGA Tour, the first rebel to come back.
It’s easy to cast Koepka’s story as a competitive pursuit but, without him going into the details, it is clear that family life drove the change. Having his wife Jena (who announced last fall that she had suffered a miscarriage) and their 2-year old son, Crew, nearby – they are at Torrey Pines this week – will be easier than traveling the globe playing LIV’s far-flung schedule.
“A lot’s gone on over the past five, six months with my family. That played a big role into coming back,” Koepka said.
According to reports, Koepka had one year remaining on his LIV contract and after speaking with its leadership to explain his desire to leave, the league allowed him to go. Koepka had no assurance he would be able to return to the PGA Tour quickly but new CEO Brian Rolapp fast-tracked the process, bringing Koepka back to Torrey Pines this week.
When Koepka was granted his release from LIV on Dec. 23, he immediately called Tiger Woods to talk about his options.
The thought process that led to this moment began last fall, Koepka said.
“I believe it was September, right around the Ryder Cup week, we had to be in New York, we were up there for a little bit. Circumstances kind of changed in my family a little bit,” Koepka said.
“Then that’s when I guess things started to change and evolve and just started to have those conversations of what’s best for my family. So we took it from there.”
When Koepka was granted his release from LIV on Dec. 23, he immediately called Tiger Woods to talk about his options.
“I’ve always had a good relationship with Tiger … that was what I wanted to do. Once I had the opportunity to I guess get reinstated on the PGA Tour, it was exciting and kind of really didn’t know what to do. [Woods] was the first person that kind of came to mind,” Koepka said.
“I didn’t know Brian, I didn’t have a relationship with him obviously just because he’s pretty new. And Jay [Monahan] was going to be the next call. I felt like Tiger was somebody that I’ve relied on in the past for questions and answers and how to deal with things and I felt like that was maybe the most comfortable call for me.”
Koepka has been open about his nervousness this week. He got through one part of it Tuesday morning, taking questions about his decision in an extended media session, stressing the importance of being with his family while also talking about regaining the form that made him the player to beat in majors for several years.
There is also the matter of reacquainting himself with players, some of whom he knows have reservations about how the process played out.
“I’m not going to put an excuse on anything else other than I’m the one holding the club, I’m the one who’s got to execute everything and I just didn’t do a good enough job [in 2024-25].” – Brooks Koepka
“I’m excited just to – maybe a little bit antsy to get to Thursday just so I can get back to playing golf and that’s where I feel the most comfortable. But I was definitely nervous just for this [media session],” Koepka said.
“Seeing guys, I was kind of overwhelmed at the text messages that I received from guys, guys on both sides and … it meant a lot to me. And like I said, I’m grateful, I’m excited and I just want to get back to playing golf.”
That is the next question hovering over Koepka. He won five times on LIV but his 2025 season was flat. He managed just two top-10 finishes last year and missed the cut in three of the four major championships.
On a macro level, this is about the ongoing tension between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf. On a more fundamental level, though, it’s about whether Koepka can rediscover the game that separated him for several years.
“I just didn’t play good last year. I don’t think, maybe the end of ’24, just wasn’t playing that great,” Koepka said.
“I’m not going to put an excuse on anything else other than I’m the one holding the club, I’m the one who’s got to execute everything and I just didn’t do a good enough job.”
Torrey Pines, in all of its natural splendor, offers Koepka a fresh start he was never certain he might have.