Brooks Koepka Becomes First Repeat U.S. Open Champion Since 1989

The U.S. Open featured much excitement and storylines all week, including course criticism and Phil Mickelson’s crazy penalty. But when it was all said and done, last year’s champion came out on top once again.

After the first round, not many would have thought that Koepka had a shot to take home the title after he, and the rest of the field, had a pretty terrible time of it, shooting a 75. Koepka didn’t waiver, however, firing back with a second round 66. Still, the reigning champion found himself far behind the leader, Dustin Johnson, who was sitting at -4, four shots ahead of the field after 36 holes.

Johnson had a collapse of his own, however, falling back to earth with a 77 on Sunday that put Koepka in a tie for the lead with three others. From there, Koepka rode the momentum all the way to the top, jumping out to a big lead to start with three birdies over his first five holes. Koepka was then able to hold steady, holding off Tommy Fleetwood, who shot 63 in his final round for a one-stroke victory, keeping the U.S. Open title.

Brooks Koepka of the United States celebrates with the U.S. Open…

Brooks Koepka of the United States celebrates with the U.S. Open Championship trophy after winning the 2018 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on June 17, 2018 in Southampton, New York. Get premium, high resolution news photos at Getty Images

The importance of the moment wasn’t lost on Koepka, as he knows how hard it is to repeat as a major champion. “I don’t want to say I didn’t think I could do it, but I knew that it was going to be that much more difficult, and to finally do it, it’s much more gratifying the second time,” Koepka said. “I can really appreciate how hard it is to win a major and to win back-to-back is special. Hopefully, there is or there will be a few more.”

There were many questions about Koepka heading into the tournament that had many doubting if he ever had a shot to repeat. For much of the season, Koepka has been dealing with a wrist injury and even admitted at the Players Championship that it wasn’t 100% healed. Even playing through the injury, however, Koepka placed 11th at the Players, 2nd at the Fort Worth Invitational, and now first at the U.S. Open.

This win likely solidifies Koepka as one of the elite golfers on the PGA TOUR and this likely isn’t the last major he will contend for. We’ll certainly be watching out for him the rest of the season.

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