Stone Dead

Stress comes in many different forms during major championships. At Oak Hill, players faced a demanding driving test and poor weather. Oh, and the weight of playing in a major.

With so much on their minds, players have to take pressure off of themselves when they can.

Consider Brooks Koepka. Aside from a lackluster opening round, he made golf look easy this week. He rarely slipped up with the driver and hit to the fat side of almost every pin (hear that, Rory?). Clean living.

But what really struck me about Koepka’s game this week was his lag putting. He had zero three-putts on the week, and when the tournament was on the line on Sunday, he consistently avoided stress on the greens. His 30- to 40-foot putts seemed like formalities; he cozied each one to tap-in range. There were no tricky comebackers or even short putts that appeared to require study.

In a way, Brooks Koepka’s entire major-championship persona is summed up by his lag putting. While his booming tee shots and pure irons are impressive, it’s his ability to make golf boring (i.e., anxiety-free) that gives him an edge. Even when he’s in trouble, as he was after hitting his tee shot in Allen’s Creek on No. 6 yesterday, you know his next shot isn’t going to make things worse. This add up to a lot of Strokes Gained: Mental Well-Being over 72 holes.

Koepka’s ability to compete without undue stress was on full display when he had a putter in his hands at Oak Hill this weekend. And like most of his major-championship opponents, his long putts almost always ended up stone dead.