‘Act Like A Child’ - Brooks Koepka On Jon Rahm After Ryder Cup Match

On Friday afternoon at the Ryder Cup, Jon Rahm, Nicolai Hojgaard, Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka were involved in an epic match that culminated with Rahm eagling two of the final three holes to tie the game.

It was an incredible match, with several birdies and eagles being traded throughout and concluded with Rahm holing a lengthy eagle putt. However, the match left a somewhat sour taste in the mouth of Koepka, who seemed to imply that he thought Rahm acted "like a child."

Speaking after the first day's play, Koepka stated: "I mean, I think me and Scottie birdied, what did we say, 14, we birdied 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, and then lost by two. So yeah. I mean, I want to hit a board and pout just like Jon Rahm did. But, you know, it is what it is. Act like a child. But we're adults. We move on."

After the comments, European captain, Luke Donald, was asked about Koepka's statement, with the Englishman saying: "I certainly didn't see any of that. Jon was a big support system for Nicolai today, and to hit a big drive down 18 and hit it on the front of the green and make an eagle for a halve, that's a lot of passion. Jon is a passionate person, but I didn't see him acting any other way."

The end of play saw Europe dominate the USA side, with a 6.5 - 1.5 score line seeing no victories for the Americans, the very first time that an American side hasn't won a match on an opening day of a Ryder Cup.

Rahm was one of the key players in the European side, with the Spaniard chipping in three times on Friday. On the last, his lengthy eagle putt clattered the hole and jumped in the air before dropping.

What followed looked like a slightly awkward handshake, with Koepka visibly, and understandably, gutted to miss out on victory on the last. 

Speaking after the afternoon four balls, Koepka stated: "We birdied 14 through 18. I mean, pretty much I figured me or Scottie makes one on 18. And lost with two eagles. So, I mean, we played good coming down. Scottie played really well. It was impressive to watch him play." 

Rahm is yet to give a response on Koepka's comments but, if history is anything to go by, it's probably not a good idea to rile Rahm, with the Spaniard playing some of his best golf when he is fired up.

These could well be more Team USA comments to fuel the fire with the European camp, after Wyndham Clark recently said he'd like to believe he is better than Rory McIlroy, before questioning whether Luke Donald's side would "leak oil" on Sunday due to fatigue.