Analyzing Brooks Koepka's return to the PGA Tour

The PGA Tour made a splash earlier this week when it announced that former star Brooks Koepka would be returning to the tour at the start of the 2026 season via the newly-created Returning Player Program.

Players who have been off the tour for at least two years and won a title at The Masters, U.S. Open, British Open, PGA Championship or The Players between 2022 and 2025 were eligible to take advantage of the program.

In addition to Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith may return to the PGA Tour from LIV, but none have yet done so.

Koepka, a nine-time winner on the PGA Tour, moved to LIV Golf in 2022. His win at the 2023 PGA Championship, the most recent of his five major championship wins, allowed him to take part in the Returning Player Program.

That victory marked the first major championship title won by an active LIV player. Koepka beat Viktor Hovland and Scottie Scheffler by two strokes to get the win at Oak Hill.

The 35-year old secured five wins as a LIV golfer, those coming in Orlando, Singapore, Greenbrier and twice in Jeddah. He’s clearly been able to deliver strong performances while playing in LIV events, but his form hasn’t been as great in majors since his win in 2023.

Koepka hasn’t placed higher than T-12 in a major since the PGA Championship win, and has only finished top-20 twice in the same amount of time. In 2025, he missed cuts at three of four majors, though he did manage the aforementioned T-12 at the U.S. Open at Oakmont

Winning LIV Golf tournaments is one thing, but the majority of pro golfers strive for success in majors. Koepka’s move signals a desire for higher and better competition than he’s found as a LIV player, which would ideally help him to perform better in majors.

It still remains to be seen if other golfers will follow Koepka in returning to the PGA Tour, but the move sets the precedent that LIV golf may not be a sustainable league long-term.

Elliott Inscho is a first-year student majoring in digital and print journalism. To contact him, email eli5026@psu.edu