Koepka to make PGA return in January under new scheme

Five-time major champion Brooks Koepka will make a PGA Tour comeback at the end of January under a new returning member programme, following his departure from LIV Golf.

The 35-year-old American controversially quit the PGA Tour to join the Saudi Arabian-backed series in 2022 and won five events over four seasons.

In December, Koepka announced that he was leaving the lucrative breakaway league despite reportedly having one year left on his contract and he recently reapplied for his PGA Tour membership.

“When I was a child, I always dreamed about competing on the PGA Tour, and I am just as excited today to announce that I am returning,” said Koepka, who has agreed to forego any payment from the FedExCup Bonus scheme during the 2026 season and will be ineligible for the Tour’s player equity programme between 2026-2030, which could amount to between $50-85m.

“I believe in where the PGA Tour is headed with new leadership, new investors and an equity program that gives players a meaningful ownership stake.”

Koepka’s desire to be reinstated appeared to have provided a huge dilemma for the PGA Tour, with rules dicatating that he would not be eligible to play on it again until August, a year after his last LIV appearance.

However, he will now line up at the Farmers Insurance Open, which is being played at Torrey Pines between 29 January – 1 February, after being offered an earlier route back on to the PGA Tour.

Only players who have been away from the PGA Tour for at least two years and have won The Players Championship or a major over the previous four seasons are eligible under the terms of the newly announced initiative.

In a letter to fans, PGA Tour chief executive Brian Rolapp outlined that programme would be only open for the 2026 campaign and was in “response to a unique set of circumstances”.

“We will continue to aggressively pursue anything that enhances the fan experience and makes the PGA Tour stronger,” said Rolapp.

“This is part of our commitment to fans, who expect the world’s best players to compete on the PGA Tour week in and week out.”

Koepka, who won the third of his US PGA Championship titles in 2023, has also agreed to make a $5m charitable contribution and has already committed to play in the Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale held on 5-8 February.

Brian Rolapp has wasted no time seeking to capitalise on Koepka’s LIV departure.

It is a bold move and he has been crystal clear in his desire to bring back LIV’s biggest talents by offering this return with no suspension time.

This is a potentially huge development and LIV will be desperate to hang on to Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith. The breakaway tour’s future could depend on them staying.

It would be hard to see LIV remaining viable if their marquee stars no longer have faith in the project. Rolapp knows this, hence this alpha play by the PGA Tour boss.

All three would face financial penalties for leaving early and like Koepka they would not benefit from equity shares in PGA Tour enterprises for five years.

But they have already banked big money and returning to a deeper competitive pool and routinely bigger tournaments may be a tempting prospect. Rahm has not been the major force of old since his move to LIV and Smith’s form has nosedived.