Koepka finds game away from home

Brooks Koepka certainly took the road less traveled to Augusta National, and that really has made all the difference.

The former Florida State star is seasoned beyond his 24 years. Unlike most gifted young American players, Koepka tested his game around the world before bringing it home. His success at every port makes him undaunted by the challenges typically facing a Masters Tournament rookie.

“I’m going there to win,” Koepka said. “Every guy that’s teeing it up that week is expecting to win. If they are not, then they probably shouldn’t be there.”

It’s foolish to think Koepka can’t after recent rookie challenges by Jason Day (2011) and Jordan Spieth (2014) at Augusta. After all, Koepka did finish tied for fourth in last year’s U.S. Open to officially qualify for his first Masters. He’s already played in six majors, making the cut in four.

He also won in Phoenix on Super Bowl Sunday to secure his PGA Tour card through 2017. Already No. 19 in the world, he’s poised to become a very familiar name to golf fans.

But it’s his résumé as a global player that sets him apart. Having failed to make it through Q school after he turned pro in 2012, the only tour he was qualified to play on was the Challenge Tour – the European Tour’s equivalent of the Web.com Tour.

“I wanted to become a well-rounded player,” he said in 2013.

After playing in the 2012 U.S. Open, Koepka decided to play some Challenge Tour events before Q School instead of burning his limited exemptions on the PGA Tour. Out of necessity it evolved into a truncated 10-event 2012 campaign. He won his eighth start in Spain, which earned him his only card for 2013 after he missed out on both Q Schools.

“It was part of the plan. Did I see that three years ago? Probably not,” he said. “But I’m very happy I did go over. And I’ve learned so much about my game, about how to travel, about how to go about things. It’s – how do I put it – it’s unique, but I’ve learned a lot. I’ve grown as a person just off the golf course.”

In 2013, he needed only eight Challenge Tour starts to win three times in Italy, Spain and Scotland to earn an immediate battlefield promotion onto the European Tour.

But the grind of traveling from one country to the next wasn’t as easy as he made it seem. On the eve of closing out his third win that secured his card, he was ready to quit. The bleakness of the Scottish weather, homesickness for American friends and weariness of being on the road started to get to him.

“I called my agent and told him I’m ready to come home. I’m ready to just get away. I’m tired of golf,” he said. “I’m not somebody that can play golf every day. I enjoy my time at home. I enjoy time off away from golf, and I really wanted to leave.”

Luckily he stayed and gained his European Tour status. The missteps that led him on a longer global journey turned out to be a blessing for him.

“I think you have to fail before you can actually really succeed,” he said. “I know there’s some odd exceptions and things like that. But for me, I’ve learned off my failures. That’s been a big thing. I’ve failed a lot. I think I should have won, I’d say maybe five, six more times in my mind, that’s what I see. But I haven’t, and I’ve learned from it every time.”

Last November, Koepka outdueled Ian Poulter and Henrik Stenson to win the Turkish Open. Armed with confidence from that victory plus top-eight finishes in a pair of fall PGA Tour events, Koepka won in Phoenix to earn a full-time place to play at home.

He’s in a better place with his career and game than a year ago, when he tried to gain PGA Tour status through a limited number of exemptions.

“There’s a big difference where I am mentally and where my game was at and where it is now I think,” he said. “The confidence level, last year, I was a bit of a hothead coming out. But I understand where I was. I only had seven spots to really get my card over here, so every shot, everything, it was super important for me.

“I don’t want to say the pressure’s off, because I don’t think that’s the right term. But I can relax a little bit more and start to go back to what really worked for me is having fun.”

Koepka still believes “nobody knows me” even after winning in Phoenix and challenging in the U.S. Open. But he’s got big goals that could change that, starting with Augusta.

“I want to be the best player in the world,” he said. “I’m not there yet, and I know it’s going to take time, but I want to get to that point.”