The scene at the 18th hole at Kiawah Island, S.C. on Sunday was spectacular. For the first time in well over a year, we had a sports event where fans were freely mobbing a player amid a big accomplishment. But the scene celebrating Phil Mickelson wasn’t as wonderful for Brooks Koepka.
Koepka was in the final pairing with Mickelson at the PGA Championship and finished tied for second. His finish is pretty remarkable considering he is recovering from a knee surgery he underwent two months ago. But Koepka didn’t enjoy the huge fan mob because his surgically-repaired knee got “dinged a few times.”
Koepka shared his feelings on the subject after the tournament concluded. He also wondered if some people targeted his injured knee.
Brooks Koepka got swallowed up in that crowd…and was NOT happy about it.
"It would have been cool if I didn't have a knee injury and got dinged a few times in the knee in that crowd because no one gave a s—, personally. But if I was fine, yeah, it would have been cool."
— Dylan Dethier (@dylan_dethier) May 23, 2021
“I don’t know, it felt somebody tried to …” Koepka said, cutting off his thought. “I don’t know what the deal was, but it’s what it is.”
Even Mickelson felt somewhat uncomfortable with the scene. He said it felt a little “unnerving,” though he acknowledged how cool it was.
The security in charge of the tournament lost control of the situation, as the fans broke through onto the fairway and surrounded the players after their tee shots on 18. Hopefully no physical damage was done to Koepka, because it was an awesome moment for fans to see.
