Brooks Koepka had a few choice words for Jon Rahm in the aftermath of Team Europe’s dominant performance in the opening round of the 2023 Ryder Cup Friday.
During the post-round interview, moments after Rahm scored an eagle at the 18th to secure a halve for he and Nicolai Højgaard against Koepka and Scottie Scheffler in the four-ball match, the five-time major champion accused Rahm of acting like a “child.”
“I mean, I think me and Scottie birdied, what did we say, 14, we birdied 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and then lost by two,” Koepka said, via Christopher Powers of Golf Digest. “So yeah. I mean, I want to hit a board and pout just like Jon Rahm did. But, you know, it is what it is. Act like a child. But we’re adults. We move on.”
The comment, even from the ever-outspoken Koepka, comes out of the left field considering the two were seemingly cordial together at the Masters in April after Rahm edged him out to win his first green jacket. But considering Rahm had just banked his second eagle in three holes to complete the comeback for his pairing, it’s understandable that emotions were running high for Koepka.
U.S. Team struggles during opening round of Ryder Cup
The U.S. Team as a collective had a rough day at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club in Rome, Italy, scoring just 1.5 points in eight matches. After getting swept in morning foursomes, the U.S. Team recorded three ties in four-ball and one loss. The lone defeat was courtesy of the pairing of Rory McIlroy and Matthew Fitzpatrick, who notched a 5 & 3 victory over Collin Morikawa and Xander Schauffele. Team Europe holds a 6.5 to 1.5 lead over the U.S. Team heading into Saturday.
U.S. Team captain Zach Johnson remains confident his team can rebound after a sluggish start.
“You got 28 points, eight are done, so we got 20 more points,” Johnson said. “Really, we’ve just kind of started the second quarter, or you could argue you’re on your fourth, fifth hole. A lot of golf left. A lot of opportunity left. And I’m confident in that because these guys are for each other. They’re for the common goal, which is to go out there and show off, do it with class, do it with character and obviously nothing but that.”
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