Brooks Koepka’s weight loss continues to be a topic of discussion at Augusta. Koepka is known for his dedication to the gym, but the golfer admitted to losing 24 pounds in the past few months, per Golf Channel. The above photo shows Koepka’s shrinked-down look at the Masters compared to last year’s U.S. Open.
Why did Koepka lose weight? The exact answer has been debated, and Koepka has been a bit vague about the reasoning. Golf’s Channel’s Ryan Lavner noted that Koepka dropped pounds thanks to a new workout regimen.
Over the past few months Koepka has been training twice a day, running and eating healthier.
“More of everything,” he said.
Except food, apparently.
“I just want to be able to eat again,” he said. “I’m going to put it back on. I just want to eat normal and not train as hard. Everything has been double the intensity, double the time.”
Koepka admitted that his lower weight has impacted his golf game, making his drives about 10 to 12 yards shorter, on average. Koepka also noted that the sacrifice was “only four months of my career.”
“When you go from 212 pounds to 190, there’s not as much weight going forward through the ball,” Koepka told Golf Channel. “I don’t have as much feel. I just feel out of sorts.”
There Is Speculation Koepka Lost Weight For His Upcoming Appearance in ESPN the Magazine’s Body Issue
GettyBrooks Koepka is noticeably thinner than he was during the 2018 majors.
Recent speculation is that Koepka dropped weight for a photo shoot for the ESPN Body Issue. Golf Week’s Eamon Lynch noted that this is the buzz in Augusta.
One possible reason for Koepka’s intense effort to get lean: according to reports, the famously buff golfer will appear in the buff in ESPN’s Body Issue, which will be released later this summer.
Koepka says he hasn’t been in the gym or lifted weights in three weeks. The week of a major is usually a normal workout week for him, but not this time. “This will be more of a relaxing week,” he said, making him about the only contender in the field who feels that way.
Koepka provided more details on his weight loss during Masters week. The golfer noted that he had blood work done to figure out what is happening and also revealed his diet was not giving him enough calories.
“I was like 1,800 calories a day,” Koepka told Golf Week. “I mean, you’re not going to be in the best physical shape at that point. You look at somebody like Michael Phelps or somebody like that eating 6,000 or 7,000 calories by lunch time. But I wanted to do it and try to lose some weight, and maybe went about it a little too aggressively for just a long period of time and the intensity of what I was doing.”
Golf Analyst Brandel Chamblee Called Koepka’s Weight Loss “Reckless Self-Sabotage”
Koepka’s weight loss has drawn criticism from media members as speculation mounds that the decision did not have to do with golf. Analyst Brandel Chamblee alluded to the Body Issue rumors and called Koepka’s decision “reckless self-sabotage.”
“For him to change his body, and his body chemistry, for vanity reasons, for a vanity shoot, is the most reckless self-sabotage that I have ever seen of an athlete in his prime,” Chamblee said, per Golf.com.
If Koepka continues to play well at Augusta it could go a long way in quieting the critics.
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Brooks Koepka’s Weight Loss: Before & After Photos