Written by Kyle Porter at CBS Sports.com
It seems straightforward that one of the longest drivers in the history of golf would succeed on the most expansive major championship course of all 441 that have been contested. But there is also an irony to the way Brooks Koepka won the 2017 U.S. Open at Erin Hills.
Koepka emerged from a scrum of bunched-up, baby-faced, electric American talents that included Rickie Fowler, Justin Thomas and Patrick Reed on the final day of the tournament. He fired a final-round 67 to tie a U.S. Open record of 16 under par and slam the door on Brian Harman and Hideki Matsuyama by four strokes to win his first major championship.
It wasn’t easy, but it didn’t look all that difficult.
After not making a single bogey on the back nine at Erin Hills over the first three days, Koepka three-putted No. 10 on Sunday to drop a stroke to the field and fall back into a tie at the time with Harman at 13 under. It was the last mistake he would make.
But it’s also true that the track in Erin received more rain and less wind than the USGA had planned. A land that was penal on huge misses and required an acute dispersion of drives and approach shots amid its sprawling fairways was tougher than it looked and more strategically-demanding than you would imagine.
Koepka played it perfectly after the hiccup on No. 10. He made three straight pars followed by three straight birdies on the heart of the course in the heat of the tournament on Sunday, and that is how U.S. Opens are taken with simplicity. After a messy couple of years for the USGA at Chambers Bay and Oakmont, Koepka left no doubt.
“I don’t think I even mentioned to my caddie, Ricky, even about winning all week,” said Koepka. “He just told me, ‘You’re playing good, just keep going. Let’s go. Let’s finish this thing off. One more good shot. One more good shot.’ And that was kind of all we talked about all week. It sounds pretty boring, but it’s the truth.'”
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