MEMPHIS, Tenn. – Brooks Koepka’s black Ford Expedition pulled into the TPC Southwind parking lot at 12:13 p.m. Sunday, just 47 minutes before he was scheduled to begin his duel with Rory McIlroy to close out the first WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.
When he walked to the tee box at No. 1, he walked right past Jena Sims – his actress/model girlfriend best known for her role in the classic film “Attack of the 50-foot Cheerleader” – without even looking up.
She was wearing a black Nike dress. The world’s No. 1 golfer was completely in the zone.
Perhaps then we should have known how Sunday would turn out, with Koepka holding the Gary Player Trophy on the 18th green as the first WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational champion. Who needs a long warm-up when you’re the most intimidating man on a golf course since Tiger Woods was in his prime?
That, at least, is what anyone who watched the biggest golf event in Memphis history came away thinking.
And my gosh, there were a lot of you.
The gallery following the superstar final pairing of Koepka and McIlroy was immense, with thousands walking the course alongside two of the top three golfers in the world from the opening tee shot, through the turn at the back nine and then coming up the 18th fairway.
It was a fitting scene for a week that lived up to all the hype that accompanied the arrival of the WGC. Longtime volunteers and fans alike marveled at how many people saturated TPC Southwind every day. They don’t release total attendance at this event, but records almost certainly were broken.
Sunday, however, was unlike anything this city has seen, with the world’s No. 1 and No. 3 golfers competing head-to-head watched by crowds that went at least 10 deep and roared with every shot.
As Koepka and McIlroy approached the first tee box, a spontaneous ovation broke out. The golfers hadn’t even been announced yet. Everyone was just thrilled to be there witnessing this.
“Memphis deserves to have the best players here, and this is a reward for all the support over the last 60-plus years of this tournament,” executive tournament director Darrell Smith said as he watched all this unfold at No. 1. “It’s definitely a good day for golf, and a good day for Memphis.”
It didn’t matter that the only bit of drama might have been whether Koepka would arrive to the course before his 1 p.m. tee time. But there he was, calm as ever.
Koepka said arriving fashionably late on Sundays is part of his routine.
“I don’t know why everybody else is in a panic. I’m not,” Koepka said. “Everybody else is stressing. I’m sure you didn’t see one ounce of stress on my face.”
It helps explain the ruthless round of golf that followed, a round of golf made more impressive after Koepka revealed he felt under the weather all week.
He had four birdies on his opening 10 holes Sunday, efficiently turning a one-shot deficit into a three-stroke lead as McIlroy faltered under the spotlight. Koepka then saved par on No. 14 and No. 15 and erased any lingering doubt with a birdie on No. 17.
“He’s not afraid to stand on your throat,” CBS analyst Nick Faldo said at one point.
“There’s nothing more I would’ve loved than see Rory battling it out going down 18 and have somebody have to make a putt,” Koepka said. “That’s what I’m sure everybody here wanted to see.”
Instead, they were given a walk down the 18th fairway that doubled as a coronation for a 29-year-old golfer who has grabbed hold of the sport. Chants of “Gucci!” rang out from the crowd, a phrase Koepka occasionally uses after a good drive.
Not long ago, he felt overlooked. Not long from now, he could be the most popular guy on the PGA Tour.
Koepka broke through and won the U.S. Open in 2017. He won the U.S. Open and PGA Championship last year. He then finished in the top five of every major this year, including another win at the PGA Championship in May when he infamously didn’t kiss Sims as they walked to the clubhouse before the final round.
On Sunday, he became one of the richest, most popular men in Memphis.
First off, he earned $1.745 million for winning the WGC-FedEx St. Jude Invitational.
As a result of that victory, he will finish first in the Wyndham Rewards standings that anoint the PGA Tour’s regular-season champion and pocket another $2 million.
And then he also won something called the Aon Risk Reward Challenge, which meant another $1 million for his wallet.
If that weren’t enough, a lot of people in Tennessee are getting free beer Tuesday thanks to a Michelob Ultra promotion that went into effect courtesy of Koepka’s win Sunday.
“Things are going well for Brooks,” PGA Commissioner Jay Monahan said. “He won this event. He’s No. 1 in the FedEx Cup as we head into the FedEx Cup playoffs. He’s No. 1 in the Wyndham Rewards. He’s No. 1 in the world. And he’s No. 1 in all of your hearts.”
But he’s a worthy first champion not just because of his accomplishments, although those help reinforce the stature of the tournament.
Koepka has been coming to this event five years running, before it was attracting all of the world’s best who came through this week. He said he knows the TPC Southwind course better than any other on the PGA Tour.
And he used part of his victory speech on the 18th to discuss how his visits to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital “changed my life.”
“I love this place,” Koepka said.
Hearing him extol the virtue of Memphis and St. Jude and this golf course and what this golf tournament has become – and will be for years to come – this anticlimactic ending felt like the right ending.
And best of all, Koepka remembered to kiss his girlfriend walking off the 18th green.
On a day that began with such anticipation, it was about the only drama Koepka had to resolve.
