It’s not fun, but Koepka couldn’t resist. He knows that’s the cost of returning to the PGA Tour after spending several years with LIV Golf.
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“There was no negotiation,” Koepka told Doug Ferguson of the Associated Press on Monday night. “It’s supposed to hurt, it hurts, but I understand. It’s not supposed to be an easy road. There are a lot of people who were hurt when I left, and I understand that’s part of coming back.”
Koepka announced Monday that he would officially return to the Tour, just weeks after ending his current contract with LIV Golf. That contract was reportedly worth more than $100 million when he first signed with the league.
The deal was struck as part of the new “Returning Member Program,” something the Tour created last week and announced Monday in an effort to allow Koepka and a few others to return to the Tour. Players who have won a major championship or The Players Championship between 2022 and 2025 are eligible to apply for reinstatement, which only applies to Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cam Smith, before February 2.
As part of the sanctions imposed, Koepka will have to make a donation of $5 million to charities. He will be ineligible for FedExCup bonus money in 2026, ineligible for sponsor exemptions on flagship events and ineligible for capital grants on the Tour for the next five years.
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In total, the Tour estimates Koepka could lose between $50 million and $85 million in potential earnings.
That plan was approved by the PGA Tour board of directors last week. Koepka, according to the Associated Press, spoke by phone with new PGA Tour CEO Brian Rolapp on Thursday night and then showed up alone at Tour headquarters on Friday to further discuss the plan.
Considering how his time with LIV Golf was going (Koepka had publicly complained about the league last summer before the two sides officially parted ways in December with one year left on his contract), Koepka wanted out. Even with what it’s costing him, he clearly believes it’s worth it.
“I needed to be there with my family for the last few months. I needed to be closer to home,” Koepka said. “I was able to get out of the LIV contract, everything aligned perfectly and I was able to return to the Tour.
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“I’m happy and grateful to have been able to come to this.”
So how will it be received again?
Koepka will make his official return later this month at the Farmers Insurance Open. He said he will also play in the Phoenix Open next month, which is where he won his first Tour event in 2015.
Koepka has won nine times on Tour throughout his career, most recently at the PGA Championship in 2023. That was his fifth major championship victory.
While the tone regarding LIV Golf has certainly changed in recent months and years (it’s no longer as hostile as it was when the Saudi-backed company began), Koepka knows he’ll still have to spend some time with Tour members in the near future.
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“I have a lot of work to do with some of the players,” Koepka said. “There are definitely guys who are happy and there are definitely guys who will be angry… If someone is upset, I need to rebuild those relationships.”
When it’s time for him to leave for Torrey Pines in a few weeks, Koepka knows it will be a strange feeling.
But he’s ready for it. And after seeing how everything played out between the Tour and LIV Golf, I had to have known this was going to happen.
“The first week I’ll be a little nervous,” Koepka said. “There’s a lot going on besides golf. I’ll be glad to put the first week behind me: dealing with the media, dealing with the players and then having some of those tougher conversations. But I’m looking forward to it.
“Am I nervous? Yes. Am I excited? Yes. In a weird way, I want to have those conversations.”