Brooks Koepka described his relationship with Rory McIlroy, and mentioned the pair have had ‘good talks’.
While the pair were initially not that close, especially when they battled one another on the PGA Tour, they have become friends in more recent times. During a chat on the latest episode of ‘Warming Up in affiliation with Golf.com, Koepka said the Northern Irishman is a player he enjoys having a laugh with.
“Yeah, Rory’s a good dude,” he said. “We’ve had some good talks. We get some good laughs out of it because everybody just — all the stuff going on in golf, sometimes you just have to sit there and laugh. The funny thing is, we’ll do that when nobody’s around.
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"If I want to talk to somebody there’s a range at Grove [XXIII, their course in South Florida] and I know there’s nobody else back there, and me and Rory are back there, and I’ve got something I want to say or he’s got something he wants to say to me he’ll pop over and we’ll talk.” The two live near one another in South Florida and they were the only active players with four or more majors after Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.
The pair shared differing views on the LIV Golf circuit, which Koepka joined in June 2022. McIlroy was one of the biggest critics of the breakaway tour, though he has since cooled on his views of the Saudi-backed league. Koepka went on to describe McIlroy as a role model and someone he sought inspiration from when he was making his way up the ranks in the early 2010s, when the 34-year-old was winning majors.
“I think, especially when I was first coming up, from ’12 to ’16, obviously I don’t want to say ‘idolized,’ that would be the wrong word. But I looked up to him a little bit,” Koepka added. “At the time, he was battling his way through the Challenge Tour and DP World Tour and eventually onto the PGA Tour; McIlroy was establishing himself as a multiple major champion.
McIlroy and Koepka will compete for glory at The Masters (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)“And trying to figure out, okay, that’s how he goes about it,” Koepka added. “I think one thing I did a really good job of was picking guys. [Dustin Johnson], [Graeme McDowell], Rory, because he was playing so good at the time. It was, okay, grab little things from this guy here, this guy, make it your own.
“But then our friendship has just developed over the years. I’ve enjoyed playing with him, playing against him. I’m pretty sure he’s done the same thing. But it’s a lot of fun, man. We practice at the same place. Live in the same area. How could you not?” Both McIlroy and Koepka will compete for The Masters title in 2024. Both players are searching for their first title at the event.
The American finished behind winner Jon Rahm in 2023 and in 2019 he was runner-up to Woods who claimed his 15th major. Asked about his chances of success at Augusta, Koepka said: "I don't know, obviously chances are pretty good. There's a lot of good players. I don't know how many guys are in the field. Usually about 90, right? Usually about 90 [it's 88 this year]. So, you know, probably got, what, 15%?"
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