Brooks Koepka carved his name in golf history Sunday by turning into the 20th men’s rival to bring home five significant championships.
That, yet he turned into the primary LIV golf player to catch a significant title, as ESPN’s Imprint Schlabach noted.
In the final round of the 2023 PGA Championship, which took place at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, Koepka defeated Viktor Hovland by two strokes and finished minus nine for the tournament.
After losing his 54-hole lead in the final round of this year’s Masters, the 33-year-old won the PGA Championship for the third time since 2018. This victory was his chance for retribution. After losing to Jon Rahm in the Masters, the most important storyline of the day was whether he could hold off Hovland and the rest of the field on Sunday.
And up until the 16th hole, everything was still in doubt.
When Hovland hit his second shot of the hole into the lip of the fairway bunker in a sequence that would decide the tournament, he was only one stroke behind the leader. He made a double bogey while Koepka birdied calmly, giving him a one-stroke lead that suddenly grew to four after all the drama was over.
Hovland, who had finished in the top 10 at this year’s Masters, was aiming for his first major title. This break was difficult for him.
Hovland is to be commended for persevering through Koepka’s first round of birdies on No. 2, 3, and 4 right off the bat. It seemed like the possible victor planned to take off with things until two intruder in succession on Nos. With birdies on Nos. 6 and 7, Hovland found his stride and the door was opened. 4 and 5.
During a back-and-forth swing that resulted in Koepka birdieing No. 1, the two players traded momentum. 10, 12, and 14, and Hovland does the same thing on the other two.
However the definitive sixteenth opening not just expense the challenger his chance to return against Koepka, it likewise assisted Scottie Scheffler with moving into a tie for second spot. After shooting a disappointing 73 in his third round, the Players Championship winner came alive with six birdies in the final 12 holes.
While Koepka won the competition, Hovland undermined and Scheffler turned in one more splendid appearance, the account of the competition could have been Michael Block.
When the club pro shot a hole in one on the 15th, he stunned the golfing world and became a fan favorite among the crowd. Along with a cold-blooded par putt on the 18th, it earned him a hug from his playing partner Rory McIlroy and helped him tie for 15th place.
That situation was significant in light of the fact that he procured a spot in the following year’s PGA Title thus.
Jack Bantock of CNN noted he turned into the main PGA Expert to complete inside the main 40 starting around 2005.
However, as Koepka won five major championships, Block and everyone else were left looking up at him.
