Brooks Koepka Explains the Start of His Feud with Bryson DeChambeau: 'We Had a Conversation'

Warren Little/Getty; Kevin C. Cox/Getty Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau

The feud between Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau has been years in the making, the former admitted while speaking with reporters ahead of the British Open.

Koepka went viral in May for his annoyed reaction when DeChambeau appeared behind him during an interview. The interaction amplified the two golfers' rivalry, which apparently began back in 2019, Koepka said.

That year, Koepka seem to criticize DeChambeau for playing slowly during the PGA Tour, going as far as calling it "embarrassing," according to Golf.com. DeChambeau later confronted Koepka's caddie, Ricky Elliott, about the comments.

"He walked up to Ricky and said 'You tell your man if he's got something to say, say it to myself,' " Koepka said on Tuesday, according to Yahoo Sports. "I thought that was ironic because he went straight to Ricky."

"Ricky told me when I came out," he added. "I hit a few putts and then just walked right over to [DeChambeau]. We had a conversation."

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David Cannon/Getty Brooks Koepka

Koepka said the two agreed to let things cool down, but the truce didn't last long, according to the 31-year-old.

"We both agreed we'd leave each other out of it and wouldn't mention each other, just kind of let it die off," he explained to reporters. "So then he was playing video games online or whatever and brought my name up and said a few things [about Koepka appearing in ESPN's The Body Issue], so now it's fair game."

"He didn't hold up his end of the bargain and I didn't like that, so I'll take my shots," Koepka added, according to ESPN.

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While the war of words between the two shows no signs of slowing down, they'll have to make peace — at least for a few days — when they become teammates at the Ryder Cup in September.

"It's only a week," Koepka said of the upcoming event from Sept. 24 to 26. "I can put it aside for business. If we're going to be on the same team, I can deal with anybody in the world for a week. I'm not playing with him. I'm pretty sure we're not going to be paired together; put it that way. I think it's kind of obvious."

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DeChambeau, meanwhile, said he doesn't remember what he and Koepka spoke about in 2019, but agreed the two could function as teammates at the Ryder Cup.

"He can say whatever he wants,'' the 27-year-old said during a later British Open press conference Tuesday, as noted by ESPN. "I think he said something back at Liberty National not upholding something. I don't know what he's talking about in that regard. Maybe that's on me. Maybe I didn't. I really don't remember anything about that. We just had a conversation that I really don't know what happened, because we haven't really bantered back and forth until now, so it's like why is that happening now."

"Besides that, I'm just here to play golf and focus on that," he continued. "If we want to keep bantering back and forth, obviously being respectful and keeping lines where they aren't getting crossed, yeah, I think it's fun and a good environment for people in golf.''