Northern Ireland caddie guides Brooks Koepka to US Open title

American Brooks Koepka fired six birdies in the final round as he powered his way to his first major title in the US Open on Sunday.

World number 22 Koepka was not really in the discussion before the start of the tournament at Erin Hills but was the picture of calm as he delivered a performance worthy of a seasoned major victor, with three consecutive birdies on holes 14, 15 and 16.

“He watched me play”.

Wind was supposed to be one of the main defenses at Erin Hills, which is the longest U.S. Open course in history but also has the widest fairways the tournament has seen.

“I have a couple Michelob Ultras, that would probably be a good start”.

The course at Erin Hills, the longest ever for a U.S. Open and with wide fairways, played right into the hands of Koepka’s big swing. By early 2015 he was back stateside and a victor on the PGA Tour when he finished first at the Waste Management Phoenix Open. If I learned anything I learned you’ve got to put four good rounds together. “I built a lot of confidence off that”. In his champion’s interview with Curtis Strange, he opened up and talked about his mindset coming into Sunday and the most important golf round of his life. I mean there’s a double (bogey) and a triple (bogey) waiting around every corner, if you just kind of take your mind off of it or just relax for a half second.

After a sun-soaked, picture-perfect first round and off-and-on rain Saturday, the expected wind never blew very hard on Sunday, sending already-high scores soaring and resulting in what will be considered the easiest U.S. Open course of all time. But I think what was underestimated was how well he knew me, how well he knew my game.

Koepka said he received a phone call from last year’s U.S. open champion Dustin Johnson last night. But no regrets. I didn’t think we were playing that slow, but when they gave us the word, we played a lot quicker on 16 and 17. You’re just kind of hitting little chip cuts and just keeping it low, trying to get loose more than anything.

“It was a low point”, Koepka said after Monday’s win. “I played really solid from the moment I got here”. And he played his college golf at Florida State, where he was a three-time All-American.

“I struck the ball the same way I have been”. McIlroy and Tiger Woods (12 under at Pebble Beach in 2000) had been the only players to finish there.

First-time major winners have now won the last seven major tournaments, starting with Australian Jason Day’s breakthrough at the PGA Championship, back in August of 2015. Fowler, 28, resurrected his hopes of a maiden major title on Saturday with a four-under-par 68.

He thought that maybe a couple of years ago he should’ve stuck with baseball.