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The 2016 Waste Man-
agement Phoenix Open
(WMPO) just wrapped up
last week, but here is a look
back at the last year’s winner,
Brooks Koepka, who had an
amazing year in 2015.
One of the PGA Tour’s
newest stars, Brooks Koepka
nurtured his golfing career
in southeastern Florida, but
it took root, in Scotland,
Kazakhstan, Kenya, Turkey,
and finally ‘bore fruit’ in
America’s desert southwest.
Get ready golf world, Koepka
is prepared and equipped
for another harvest of first-
place finishes, which could
include a Green Jacket in
April in eastern Georgia!
On Super Bowl Sunday
last year, when most sports
fan’s attention was focused
on the Phoenix suburb of
Glendale, the golfing world
was watching another
sporting spectacle unfold
at the WMPO, taking place
across town in Scottsdale.
Young Koepka was left
standing alone at the top of
the leaderboard, one stroke
clear of the field, which
included, two-time Masters
Champion Bubba Watson,
rising Japanese superstar
Hideki Matsuyama, and
American
phenomena,
Jordan Spieth.When Koepka
started the final round, he
was three shots off the lead
held by Scotland’s Martin
Laird. By day’s end, he
was second to none after a
closing round of 5-under-
par 66. Over the weekend,
he bested a world-class
field that included major
champions and two FedEx
Cup winners. Simply put,
Koepka is the real deal and
the golfers of the world
know it.
What was Koepka’s response
to his inaugural PGA Tour
victory? Not much!
“It feels amazing,” said
Koepka, who won the
Turkish Open in November
of 2014 for his first victory
on the European Tour and
qualified for last year’s
Masters by virtue of a fourth-
place finish at the 2014 U.S.
Open at Pinehurst, where
he was America’s highest
finisher.
“I have known Brooks since
he was in sixth grade,” says
Deacon Greg Sherman,
Brooks’ high school golf
coach at Cardinal Newman
High School in West Palm
BROOKS KOEPKA
A NEW STAR
IS BORN
By:
Mike May
NWO Golf Links