Claude Harmon Opens Up On Brooks Koepka Split

The pair's split was announced in January to the surprise of the golf world

Claude Harmon Opens Up On Brooks Koepka Split
(Image credit: Getty Images)

The pair's split was announced in January to the surprise of the golf world

Claude Harmon Opens Up On Brooks Koepka Split

The golfing world was surprised to hear of the split between Brooks Koepka and his long-time coach Claude Harmon III in January.

Harmon oversaw Koepka's rise from Challenge Tour player to World No.1, with the American winning four Majors under Harmon's stewardship.

The duo seem to have split amicably, with Harmon, who still coaches World No.1 Dustin Johnson, clearly holding no hard feelings.

"I just got fired by Brooks Koepka, I was with Brooks for eight years," the American said on the Filthy Lipout Podcast.

"You know, I think you get players that say ‘Listen I’m just tired of hearing the same thing’ and I’ve always been one that would say, ‘Well listen, I’m not gonna make stuff up, I can try and tell you something different but we kind of know what you do as a player and if you’ve had success.’ 

"You know Brooks had an eight year run of some incredible golf and I think Brooks is at a stage of his career having gone through an injury where maybe he wants to hear something different and that kind of stuff happens."

Koepka apparently told Harmon face-to-face at The Floridian, where Harmon teaches, that they would no longer be working together.

This came just three days after The Masters, where Koepka was T7th.

“I love Claude, we had a great run and he’s still family to me, but unfortunately we’re not working together anymore,” Koepka said in a statement to GolfWeek in January.

The American recently won his eighth PGA Tour title at the Waste Management Phoenix Open

Harmon chats about numerous topics on the Filthy Lipout podcast, from growing up with a Masters champion as his grandad to some amazing Tiger Woods stories to working with Dustin Johnson and much more.

There's also some superb insight on Koepka's work with DJ and the pair's rise to the top together.

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Elliott Heath
News Editor

Elliott Heath is our News Editor and has been with Golf Monthly since early 2016 after graduating with a degree in Sports Journalism. He manages the Golf Monthly news team as well as our large Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. He covered the 2022 Masters from Augusta National as well as five Open Championships on-site including the 150th at St Andrews. His first Open was in 2017 at Royal Birkdale, when he walked inside the ropes with Jordan Spieth during the Texan's memorable Claret Jug triumph. He has played 35 of our Top 100 golf courses, with his favourites being both Sunningdales, Woodhall Spa, Western Gailes, Old Head and Turnberry. He has been obsessed with the sport since the age of 8 and currently plays off of a six handicap. His golfing highlights are making albatross on the 9th hole on the Hotchkin Course at Woodhall Spa, shooting an under-par round, playing in the Aramco Team Series on the Ladies European Tour and making his one and only hole-in-one at the age of 15 - a long time ago now!


Elliott is currently playing:


Driver: Titleist TSR4

3 wood: Titleist TSi2

Hybrids: Titleist 816 H1

Irons: Mizuno MP5 5-PW

Wedges: Cleveland RTX ZipCore 50, 54, 58

Putter: Odyssey White Hot OG #5

Ball: Srixon Z Star XV