Is it possible for a performance to still be considered vintage if the best is still in front? Brooks Koepka will attempt to answer this question for us as he followed up a stellar 7-under 65 in Round 1 with a methodical 5-under 67 on Friday at the 2023 Masters to stand at 12 under.
Coming into the week off his victory at LIV Golf Orlando, Koepka was adamant his health and subsequently his game had returned. Through 36 holes, it is hard to spot the lie.
“I don’t think [I’m] far off at all,” said Koepka on returning to his previous major championship form. “I mean, I’ve got a completely different knee, so the normal is a little bit different. But swing-wise, it still feels the same. I’m able to do everything I need to. And the confidence is there. The confidence was lost just because of my knee and that was it.”
Koepka commanded a five-stroke lead by the time he strutted off the 18th green at Augusta National, falling two strokes shy of tying the 36-hole scoring record attained by Jordan Spieth in 2015. That’s more than fine with the four-time major champion, who will instead look ahead to the weekend where the third leg of the career grand slam could be awaiting.
Drawing what appears to be the better side of the weather, Koepka took advantage early in Round 2. Momentum-building par saves on Nos. 1 and 3 sandwiched a birdie on the par-5 2nd – a common theme for the big-hitting Floridian.
Four straight pars ensued before the big bird landed on the eighth. Working his second from 250 yards around the trees and dropping it to 13 feet, Koepka sent shockwaves through the patrons of Augusta National when his putt found the bottom of the cup for an eagle.
“There was a bit of mud that was stuck on the front of the ball that was kind of odd and [I] kind of wasn’t sure if it was going to fly off or what it was going to do,” said Koepka. “But you know, luckily, it was right where it needed to be. I thought it was a good number, but you’re not trying to go past that pin and you’re trying to leave it short.”
A first-nine 33 saw Koepka turn in 10 under as he sprinted downhill into the most difficult stretch of the golf course. The irons continue to cooperate from Nos. 10-12 as viable birdie opportunities were present on each for the 32 year old. Unfortunately for Koepka — and fortunately for the rest of the field — well-struck putts failed to connect.
Yet, as he did on the first nine and as he has done in nearly every major championship since 2017, Koepka remained patient and systematically chose his spots to attack. After hitting his tee shot left on Thursday, leading to his lone dropped shot of this tournament, Koepka nearly repeated his mistake on the par-5 13th. But when it’s your day, it’s your day.
Narrowly finding the left side of the fairway alongside Rae’s Creek, Koepka’s second from just outside 200 yards hunted the flag stick leading to birdie. Two holes later, Koepka was at it again.
A spot of controversy roughly 17 hours ago, the 15th fairway instead acted as the canvas for Koepka’s swiftest brush stroke of the day. As if irked by the hole itself, the man with the mightiest chip on his shoulder sent his second soaring through the air, settling 16 feet below the hole. Controversy once again ensued when Koepka’s eagle putt, dead in the heart of the cup, fell a few revolutions short — an unsaid rule golfers everywhere know by which to abide.
Sensible pars on 16 and 17 set the stage for one final lash from Koepka on the last. As he did the day prior, Koepka bashed the big stick up and around the hill before another one of his sizzling irons cut through the fleeting sunshine of Augusta National.
A fifth par breaker was not meant to be for Koepka on Friday as a par on the 18th wrapped up his first 36. He will hope to be wrapped in green 36 holes from now should his fifth major championship title fall into his hands.
“The whole goal is to win the grand slam, right?” Koepka said. “I feel like all the greats have won here, and they have all won British Opens as well. Look, I guess it’s one more box for me to tick to truly feel like I’ve done what I should have accomplished in this game.”