Brooks Koepka's shock Irish Open debut sparks Ryder Cup captain's pick speculation
BROOKS KOEPKA is set to make his long-awaited Irish Open debut next month.
The news has caused quite a stir among the golf world as the LIV Golf star's shock addition to the K Club field has sparked rumours of an imminent captain's pick for the Ryder Cup.
2
Brooks Koepka will play in the Irish Open ahead of the Ryder Cup
2
TEAM USA Skipper Keegan Bradley will name his captain's picks after nxt week Tour Championship at East Lake
The automatic qualifiers lock in after this week's BMW Championship, and Keegan Bradley's captain's picks will come shortly after next week's TOUR Championship finale at East Lake.
And five-time major winner Koepka's announcement to take part in the Irish Open at the K Club has raised eyebrows.
LIV players are banned from PGA Tour events but can play in certain DP World Tour events.
Koepka is currently finishing off his season with Smash GC at LIV Golf Indianapolis, but only a matter of days after the Team Championship in Michigan the following week before a trip to Kildare.
He's had a best finish of T2 at LIV GOLF Singapore back in March.
The Floridian will tee it up at the K Club from 4–7 September, just weeks before the Ryder Cup takes place at Bethpage Black.
It will be Koepka's first-ever appearance at Ireland's national open, having never played the event during his European Tour stint between 2012 and 2014.
And the move has fueled speculation that the former world number one may been in contention for one of Bradley's wildcard picks.
With just over a month until the Ryder Cup, U.S. Team Captain Keegan Bradley has not decided whether he will be a playing captain at Bethpage Black.
But he seemed less open to the idea after falling out of the top-6 automatic places, which could co-inside with a selection for Koepka instead.
Scottie Scheffler suffers major blow ahead of PGA Tour playoff event after $43 million season earnings are revealed
Speaking at the BMW Championship, skipper Bradley said: 'We're ready for this if it happens.
"I'm not sure it's going to. I can truly sit here right now and say I don't know what's going to happen.
"I have to look at myself just like any other player trying to make the team. I'm 10th in points right now, and that's not sixth.'
35-year-old Kopeka last claimed major number five at the 2023 PGA Championship - meaning he's still exempt from all majors until 2028 - raising the question as to why he's playing the Irish Open?
Koepka will join Masters champion Rory McIlroy - runner-up at Royal County Down last year - in a solid field that also features fellow LIV Golf stars Tyrrell Hatton and 1999 Irish Open winner Sergio Garcia.
That timing, coupled with his return to a DP World Tour stage, is fuelling speculation that a captain's pick could be in play.
Koepka's caddie Ricky Eliott is from Northern Ireland, and the pair are also very close pals with 2010 US Open winner Graeme McDowell, who is also a member of Koepka's SMASH GC.
All the action from Bethpage Black gets underway in just over a month.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RTÉ News
2 hours ago
- RTÉ News
Scottie Scheffler claims fifth win of the season at BMW Championship
World number one Scottie Scheffler fired a sizzling final round of three-under-par 67 to claim the BMW Championship and secure a fifth win on the PGA Tour this season. The Texan, who won two majors in 2025, overturned a four-shot deficit, held overnight by Scotland's Robert MacIntyre. Scheffler, who finished on 15 under, had a mid-round stumble but six birdies, including a long chip-in birdie on 17 was enough to see him claim a two-shot victory over MacIntyre. The Scotsman could not emulate Justin Rose's success last week, stumbling out of the gate with three birdies in the first five holes. Leaderboard Rory McIlroy will return to East Lake in second spot in the FedEx Cup standings as he finished in a tie for 13th place. The Northern Irish golfer finished with a final round of level-par 70 in which he made two double bogeys, two bogeys and six birdies in a rollercoaster finish to his week. Shane Lowry had a strong Sunday shooting a three-under-par round of 67 and will enter the season finale in 24th spot. The Offaly native finished on one-over-par for the tournament after his low round of the week that left him joint-23rd.
Irish Examiner
2 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Scheffler produces a breathtaking birdie to seal brilliant BMW Championship win
Scottie Scheffler hit one of the most stunning shots of his career to seal his fifth win of a sparkling season. Carrying a one-shot lead over playing partner Robert MacIntyre on the penultimate hole of the BMW Championship in Maryland, the World No.1 found thick rough under the pin on the hugely testing 17th of Caves Valley. In a situation where it looked like he could be struggling to make a par and retain his lead, Scheffler instead produced a moment of pure magic. He chopped his chip high to the crest on the green and watched as the ball skipped forward and rolled in the direction of the pin before slowing just enough to take its turn towards the cup. With a slight pause for dramatic effect it fell into the cup for a breathtaking birdie. SCOTTIE. SCHEFFLER. ARE YOU KIDDING?!?! A chip-in birdie to take a two-shot lead on the 71st hole @BMWchamps! — PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 17, 2025 It was enough to give the Texan a two-shot lead which he held up the 18th to add the BMW Championship to two majors (the PGA Championship and Open at Portrush) as well as the Byron Nelson and the Memorial in another glorious campaign. Having started the closing day four back of his Scottish playing partner Scheffler fired a three-under 67 to finish on 15-under. "Any time you hole a chip like that it's pretty nice. It looked good when it landed, it looked good when it was rolling and it's nice to see that one go in, said Scheffler, who marked a 17th-straight round under par on the tour with Sunday's 67. "When it gets to this timeof year it can be a bit tiring. I think it has lot to do with the intensity I bring to each round. I try not to take days off. I try not to take shots off." This week's tournament near Baltimore was the second leg of the FedEx Cup Playoffs, the culmination of the PGA Tour season. Now Scheffler will carry even more momentum into next week's season finale Tour Championship at East Lake, where an eye-watering prize pot of $40m will be on the line. In all, Scheffler has now won 14 times in his last 33 starts. MacIntyre was trying to pull off a daunting feat at Caves Valley — complete a pillar-to-post victory having stormed into the lead with an opening 62 but hold off the inevitable Scheffler in the process. In sweltering conditions the big leftie was sweating early. MacIntyre bogeyed the opening hole after Scheffler had birdied it and his four-shot cushion was instantly cut to two. In truth MacIntyre rarely looked fully in the groove and bogeys at the second and fifth allowed Scheffler to take the lead. But the scoring slowed and the two Ryder Cup opponents stayed within touching distance throughout with others behind like Tommy Fleetwood and Sam Burns perhaps sensing an unlikely opening, especially when Scheffler wobbled with bogeys at 12 and 14, the second coming after an inexplicable three-putt. However the World No.1 has mostly looked imperious over the past two years and he duly returned to form with a birdie on the 15th and then that moment of genius on the 17th.
Irish Times
3 hours ago
- Irish Times
Scottie Scheffler overhauls Bob MacIntyre with help from stunning chip-in in Baltimore
A stunning chip-in at the 17th hole helped Scottie Scheffler come from a four-shot deficit at the start of the day to beat Scotland's Bob MacIntyre at the BMW Championship for his fifth PGA Tour win of the season. It continues a remarkable run for the world number one of 12 wins since March 2024, including three Majors and an Olympic gold medal. The American's consistency has also been astounding as he has not been outside the top 10 since the Players Championship in March. He is the first player since Tiger Woods (2006-07) to win five or more tournaments in back-to-back seasons. Scheffler was given a big helping hand at Caves Valley, however by the disappointing MacIntyre, who bogeyed his first two holes and did not have a birdie until the 16th. It was not vintage Scheffler at times in the second FedEx Cup event, missing more than a few makeable putts, including a surprising three-putt from 17 feet at the 14th. READ MORE But with the pressure on at the penultimate hole with the lead down to one strokes, Scheffler produced on his greatest shots with a miraculous greenside chip-in that would go along with the very best Tiger Woods highlights of old. From the rough, Scheffler pitched the ball onto the slope and watched it roll dead weight into the middle of the cup. "Would you believe it?!?!" Scottie Scheffler chips in an incredible shot at the BMW Championship 🏌️ — Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) Scheffler finished on a 15-under-par total after a final round of 67, two shots ahead of MacIntyre who shot 73. Maverick McNealy finished third on 11 under. Meanwhile, Shane Lowry comfortably made the PGA Tour 's season-ending Tour Championship for only the second time in his career after a week-best three-under-par 67 in the final day of the BMW Championship. Lowry had four birdies and a bogey as he finally caught fire with the putter, topping strokes gained stats on the green while holing 110 feet worth of putts. It moved him into the top 25 for the tournament and 24th in the FedEx Cup standings, with the top 30 progressing to East Lake. He will be joined there by Rory McIlroy , who started the FedEx Cup playoffs in second place and heads to the Tour Championship in the same position despite skipping last week and having an mixed week here. The Northern Irishman's final round had seemingly been derailed by back-to-back double bogeys on the fifth and sixth holes, but he responded well on the way in with five birdies from the ninth hole for a level-par round of 70 and three under for the tournament. Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland during the final round of the BMW Championship. Photograph: Kevin C Cox/Getty There were flashes of quality for McIlroy, including a superb 300-yard 3-wood over water to drive the short par 4 11th, enough to give him optimism for East Lake, a course where he has won the Tour Championship three times. 'I wasn't expecting much to be in contention [after three weeks off], but there were glimmers of really good stuff in there this week,' McIlroy said. 'As I said I found a bit of a groove over those last nine holes. It is certainly something to build off going into the Tour Championship next week.' Lowry did not do enough to push his way into the automatic places for the European Ryder Cup team, where Rasmus Højgaard looked to be cruising to a place and a second win at the Danish Golf Championship in three years before he let a four-shot lead slip to Marco Penge on the DP World Tour. The 24-year-old would have got into the automatic qualification spots with a victory at Furesø Golfklub, but was left to rue errors and inspired play by Penge, who sealed his second DP World Tour win of the season. The Englishman shot a four-under-par 67 which included birdies on his final two holes to beat Højgaard by a shot on 16 under. Højgaard managed to get an impressive eagle on the par 5 18th to force Penge to hole a three-footer for victory, but it was too little too late for the Dane. Højgaard began the round with a one-shot lead over Penge and started his round in inspired form with an eagle on the par 5 third after an approach to three feet and followed it up with birdies at the fourth and sixth holes. Then the wheels came off with three bogeys and a double bogey at the par 3 ninth where he failed to make the green from a greenside bunker and took three more to get home. Penge left the door ajar with his only bogey of the day at the 16th, but responded with a brilliant approach to two feet for birdie at the penultimate hole to restore his two-shot advantage heading into the 72nd hole. 'I've been playing so well this year,' Penge said. 'You know, coming back from my time off, to have won so soon [after that] and to achieve what I've achieved since I won. 'My main goal after I won was to not get complacent and drop off basically. My team have been a massive support for me, my family, everyone involved really. 'It's made me keep striving for more and this is amazing. And Rasmus, he's some player, to hit the shot he hit into the last and make eagle and basically make me have to win it was unbelievable.' Penge has moved up to 14th in Ryder Cup rankings after an impressive year on the DP World Tour which includes a win in China and a tied second-place finish at the Scottish Open. Another win next week at the British Masters, the final qualifying event, would give Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald something to think about. Højgaard will get another chance to make the team automatically at The Belfry. In Irish amateur golf, Stuart Grehan made history as he claimed the AIG Irish Amateur Close Championship in Wesport. The County Louth golfer followed in the footsteps of Peter O'Keeffe (2021) and Pádraig Harrington (1995) in completing the Irish Amateur Open-Irish Close double.
