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After his worst major finish of the season – a tie for fourth – Brooks Koepka has criticised JB Holmes’ pace of play in the final round of the Open Championship at Royal Portrush.
Koepka, whose US PGA victory at Bethpage was sandwiched between runner-up finishes at the Masters and US Open, was seen looking at a rules official and pointing at an imaginary watch on his wrist as his frustrations bubbled over on the 12th.
After initially saying his fellow American “wasn’t that bad”, Koepka twisted the knife.
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“I’m ready to go most of the time,” said the 29-year-old. “What I don’t understand is when it’s your turn to hit, your glove is not on, then you start thinking about it, that’s where the problem lies.
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“It’s not that he takes that long. He just doesn’t do anything until his turn. That’s the frustrating part. But he’s not the only one that does it out here.”
Holmes was caught taking ten practice swings on the first tee and backed away from his opening shot of the day twice, before spraying one of bounds en route to a double-bogey start. It only got worse from there and he went on to shoot the highest final round in The Open since 1966 – a miserable 16-over 87.
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Koepka, who has been outspoken about slow play several times already this year, added: “He had a rough day. But JB is a slow player.”
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He also had harsh words for the PGA Tour’s handling of speed matters.
“The European Tour does an unbelievable job with the pace of play, posting it in the locker rooms,” said Koepka. “The PGA doesn’t do that.”
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