Brooks Koepka did not have much momentum going for him midway through his second nine on Thursday. Having started his day on the 10th hole, the defending champion and three-time PGA winner was 1 under par and making no birdies while others around him were going low.
And then lightning struck. Koepka eagled the 590-yard seventh hole, reaching the green with a 6-iron, then hit a nice tee shot into the 169-yard eighth to make birdie on top of it. That quickly, he had gone from 1 under to 4 under and was very much in the mix.
“I said to Ricky (Elliott, his caddie) walking up 5, if we can get to 3 or 4 (under), that would be nice,” said Koepka, who won his third PGA title (and fifth major) a year ago at Oak Hill. “Just stay patient. That’s what majors are all about, I think.
“You can’t win it today, but you just try to hang around and give yourself a chance or in a good spot come Sunday. ... It was nice to see the one on 8 go in. I thought it was short, but I’ll take it. Really happy with the way I finished.”
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