Brooks Koepka reveals ‘weirdest part’ of injury hampering US Open bid

Brooks Koepka has battled injury heading into the US Open, but feels he’s ‘good enough’ to make an impression at Shinnecock Hills once again.

The American won the tournament back-to-back in 2017 and 2018, with his second success coming on the links of Long Island, New York.

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However, he suffered a hand injury ahead of his return to Shinnecock Hills, and was forced to pull out before the final round of last week’s RBC Canadian Open.

Koepka has been dealing with a flare-up in his ulnar nerve, but admitted there has been ‘quite a bit of improvement’ after managing nine holes on Tuesday.

Speaking to the media at Shinnecock Hills, he opened up about the ‘weirdest part’ of his injury.

Brooks Koepka reveals ‘no pain’ over hand injury

“Excited to be able to hold a golf club again,” Koepka, who has been back on the PGA Tour since January, told reporters on the eve of the 2026 US Open.

“I don’t think the grip strength is a hundred percent, but it’s good enough.

“It’s fine. There’s no pain. There’s absolutely no pain, which is kind of the weirdest part of this whole thing.

“I’d almost prefer there was a little bit of pain.

“It would make sense why this hurts and that doesn’t. It just feels like you hit your funny bone all the time.”

While the injury hasn’t exactly been painful for Koepka, it did have a frustrating impact on his exploits in Toronto.

He withdrew amid complaints that he could hardly hold his clubs when he was trying to swing.

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Even if his full grip strength isn’t quite there ahead of the US Open, his movement remains unaffected.

“The movement’s fine. I can do everything,” Koepka continued.

“It’s literally just my ring finger and pinkie finger were just kind of — at the transition coming down, they would come off.

“It felt like they were coming off the golf club, but they were just very weak.”

The five-time major champion has happy memories of Shinnecock Hills, thanks to that glory he found in 2018.

Brooks Koepka’s game ‘feels good’ for US Open title chase

But the Long Island venue is regarded as one of the toughest in North America, and even those that are fully fit could be in for a tough ride this week.

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Ahead of the US Open, Koepka was also asked to compare his current form to that of 2018 — which was arguably the peak of his career — and offered a confident answer.

“I think ball-striking is even better than what it’s been,” he explained.

“Putting, I had a great week putting last week. I’m excited for the challenge.

“This course can be quite difficult. You’re going to have to be creative around this place and really, really work on your angles coming in.

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“I’m excited about it, and the game feels good.”

Koepka has placed in the top 20 in six events this year — including the Masters.

He won the US Open in 2018 with a score of 1-over-par, holding off Tommy Fleetwood by one stroke.

Eight years on, and Koepka has been paired with Cameron Young and Chris Gotterup for a 7:30am ET opening round tee time.

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