Tour pro with a famous last name is back from injury after 15 months. Can Chase Koepka finally find his way?

He’s far from LIV Golf’s most famous player—he’s not even a member of the league any more—but Chase Koepka still can claim one of its most viral moment. Now almost two years removed from sending the Australian crowd into a frenzy with a hole-in-one at the LIV Adelaide event, Koepka is making a return to competition that he hopes can launch a new chapter in an otherwise up-and-down professional career.

Predictably, the 30-year-old has leaned on a familiar face—older brother Brooks—in helping him recover from nerve damage to his shoulder. Asked to sum up their family bond, Chase recalls a great story from a U.S. Open qualifier in 2012. That was back when Brooks had to qualify for them–before he had won back-to-back U.S. Opens in 2017 and 2018 among five career majors.

Brooks, then 22, needed only a par at the par-5 18th at the Black Diamond Ranch in Lecanto, Fla., to earn a spot in the major being held later at Olympic Club. With Chase caddieing that day, Brooks went for the green in two. His ball finished in a bunker, and a subsequent bogey relegated him to a playoff. While waiting for extra holes, a text came from their father, Bob, who wanted to know why Brooks didn’t lay-up. Bob then called, but Brooks was too annoyed to take it. So, Chase answered.

“He was 220 out. What did you want him to do, Dad?” Chase asked his father.

Brooks then faced Andy Zhang in sudden death and, of course, the playoff hole was the 18th. He went for the green in two, but this time made birdie to win and book his major debut.

Almost 13 years later, Chase says the memory is still vivid. “That story is so funny, but true,” Chase told Golf Digest over the phone en route to the Philippines. “It’s a cool bond we have. No matter what, we always have each other’s backs.”

Indeed, they have. After Chase made his wild ace at the party hole at LIV Adelaide in 2023 while playing on his brother’s team that season, he struggled to find any form. He finished 48th from 50 players on the season-long standings in 2023 and was relegated from the 54-hole league.

Two options he was pursuing were the LIV Golf Promotions (qualifying school) event in late 2023 and using his status as a former LIV player on the Asian Tour for 2024.

While practicing during the offseason, though, Chase started to feel pain from a chronic shoulder injury flare up. But he noticed it had now moved to his neck. “I tried hitting balls to get ready to go to the promotions event and I couldn't make a full swing,” Chase recalled.

He travelled to Los Angeles to see Dr. Neal ElAttrache, an orthopaedic surgeon who has worked on a variety of high-profile athletes from Brooks to Tom Brady and even the late Kobe Bryant. Tests revealed Chase “had some nerve damage in my shoulder from my neck all the way through my shoulder and into my fingers.”

Then came surgery and fourth months of rehabilitation. “I had to learn how to pick things up again and learn how to squeeze my hand again,” Chase said, who wasn’t able to hit balls until before Thanksgiving last November.

Thankfully for Chase, who lives in Stuart, Fla., about 30 minutes from Brooks’ Jupiter home, his brother is well versed in injury recovery, having shattered his kneecap and torn his medial patellofemoral ligament in 2021. That required surgery, by Dr. ElAttrache, and significant recovery.

His advice to Chase was to take it slow.

“Brooks was [adamant] that I should not rush back,” Chase said. “He kept saying, ‘You have the time, so use it to your advantage. Get healthy and find your passion for the game again.’

“He also took off his golf hat and was just a good brother to me.”

It’s one of the reasons why Chase took so long to return to competition. He didn’t play a single tournament in 2024, his last formal start coming at LIV’s season-ending event in Miami in November 2023.

In that time, it was difficult not to live in the past, namely his stunning 9-iron tee at the par-3 12th at The Grange Golf Club at LIV Adelaide, dubbed the Watering Hole, during the final round. Chaos erupted, with thousands of fans throwing their beers onto the tee, showering Chase, his playing partners and caddies. In the grandstands, comedian Bert Kreischer, who was entertaining at the event, took his shirt off and celebrated the moment. The moment drew headlines and highlights around the sporting world.

“It was unbelievable. I still had about nine holes to play [in the round] and I got a standing ovation on every hole,” Chase recalled. “[Kreischer] had me come up on stage later that night at his comedy show in Adelaide. Bert and I have become good friends.”

The funniest congratulations, though, came from the famous rapper Kodak Black.

“He must have seen videos of the ace and that one of his songs was my walk-up song,” Chase said. “He sent me a message that said, ‘You’re him.’” “I’m Him” is a term used to describe dominant athletes in various sporting arenas, from LeBron James to Joe Burrow.

It was the highlight in an otherwise tough season for Chase. How tough? He finished 42nd or worse in nine of 13 LIV events.

“I made the ace and that was exciting, but there really wasn't a lot of good shots outside of that,” he said. “It was an amazing opportunity. I’m so thankful, but I didn't play good enough to earn my spot back out [on LIV]. Right now, my goal is just to get back playing on the Asian tour. I’m just taking it as it comes.”

Among the positives in recent months: Chase was inducted into the University of South Florida Sports Hall of Fame for his college golf accomplishments.

Brooks

The Asian Tour is a partner of LIV Golf and created a lucrative International Series, whose Order of Merit winner receives a promotion to LIV the following season. Chase sees it as a great pathway back to LIV, but he knows he’s got work to do in the meantime. “My goal is to finish in the top 65 on the Asian Tour to keep my card,” he said. “I know [returning from injury] is going to be difficult.”

Which brings us to this week. Chase will return to competition Thursday at Manila Southwoods G. & C.C. He’s been practicing in earnest around the Jupiter area with Brooks. Sometimes, though it’s been difficult to concentrate on preparing for the Asian Tour’s 2025 season opener and not think about older bro’s chances of winning a sixth career major this year.

“I played with him and it was blowing 30 miles an hour and he shot nine under,” Chase said. “He’s putting it well. He's just got to be in [contention] on a Sunday [at a major] and he's going to have a good chance to win.”

And so Chase begins his climb back to pro golf. But he’s at least armed with some sage advice from his older brother. “Brooks said, ‘Have zero expectations these first couple weeks. Don't try and be anybody else. Just see where the ball is going and go hit it again and just enjoy it.’”