Feature n the eve of the biggest final round of his young career , Brooks Koepka received a phone call from defending U . S . Open champion and close friend Dustin Johnson . Johnson , who missed the cut in the 117th U . S . Open at Erin Hills , offered the kind of encouragement a 27-year-old seeking his first major championship needed .
“ He told me to just keep doing what I ’ m doing , you ’ re going to win the thing , and don ’ t get ahead of yourself ,” said Koepka .
Then Koepka turned Johnson into a prophet . Koepka , one of the biggest hitters in the game , continued to bring the longest U . S . Open venue to its knees . Starting Sunday one stroke behind 54-hole leader Brian Harman , the former Florida State All-American fired a 5-under-par 67 – his third sub-70 round of the championship – to produce a four-stroke victory over Harman and world No . 4 Hideki Matsuyama , of Japan . Koepka ’ s 72-hole total of 16-under 272 was four strokes shy of the championship record registered by Rory McIlroy in 2011 at par-71 Congressional Country Club in Bethesda , Md ., and it tied the Northern Irishman ’ s mark in relation to par . He also became the seventh consecutive first-time major champion and the third American in a row to win the U . S . Open , the first time that ’ s happened since 2000 when Tiger Woods followed Payne Stewart and Lee Janzen .
It was all part of a record-setting week at Erin Hills , the first course to host a U . S . Open in Wisconsin . Even though the wind blew the hardest it had all championship – 15 to 25 mph – 18 under-par scores were posted on Sunday , bringing the total to 140 , which surpassed the 124 registered in 1990 at Medinah ( Ill .) Country Club . Koepka ’ s four-stroke victory is the largest in the last nine majors , dating to 2015 U . S . Open champion Jordan Spieth ’ s four-stroke win in the 2015 Masters . Even more astonishing was the seven golfers who finished double digits under par , with Tommy Fleetwood ( 11-under 277 ) finishing fourth , and Bill Haas , 18-hole leader Rickie Fowler and U . S . Open rookie Xander Schauffele tying for fifth at 10-under 278 . Those relation-topar numbers would have won all but two U . S . Opens : Woods ’ 15-stroke romp in 2000 at Pebble Beach ( Calif .) Golf Links and McIlroy ’ s eight-stroke victory in 2011 .
Unfortunately for them , Koepka , No . 22 in the Official World Golf Ranking , was just too good . His impeccable ball-striking led to 17 of 18 greens hit , and his three consecutive birdies from Nos . 14-16 were
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the coup de grace . Through nine holes , it appeared the championship would come down to a Koepka-Harman duel , and when the former registered his first three-putt of the championship on No . 10 for a bogey 5 , the two were deadlocked at 13 under . Things could have unraveled for Koepka two holes later , but he converted a 9-foot par putt . That set the stage for his birdie barrage , including a 17-footer on the par-3 16th to reach 16 under . When Harman made a bogey 5 on the par-4 12th and a rare three-putt on No . 13 , any drama was all but removed . “ I don ’ t believe in moral victories ,” said
Koepka with the trophy
KOEPKA ’ S FIRST MAJOR TITLE
Harman , the 2003 U . S . Junior Amateur champion who was vying to become the first left-handed golfer to hoist the U . S . Open Trophy . “ I had an opportunity today and I didn ’ t get it done . But at the same time , I don ’ t feel as though I lost a golf tournament . I think Brooks went out and won the tournament .” Matsuyama made a late run with five birdies over his final eight holes to get into the clubhouse at 12 under , but Koepka never wavered , producing a pair of pars on 17 and 18 to seal the win . Koepka didn ’ t outwardly celebrate on the 18th green because he didn ’ t exactly know where Harman , in the final pairing behind him ,