Should the PGA Tour Welcome Brooks Koepka Back With NO Punishment? — Fans Are Deeply Divided  As talk of Brooks Koepka’s potential return heats up, one question is splitting the golf world right down the middle: should the PGA Tour bring him back without consequences?

It has only been a couple of days since Brooks Koepka left LIV Golf. But within minutes after his exit, the PGA Tour had already released a statement mentioning him as a valuable player. The cryptic message left many wondering if Brian Rolapp & co. were considering waiving his suspension.

It’s not the first time reports of Koepka moving to the PGA Tour have been in the headlines.

The 5-time major winner started the rumors when he attended the TGL event in February 2025. He was seen casually chatting with Max Homa, Tom Kim, and Tiger Woods during the event. That was only one of the incidents that suggested Koepka was interested in joining the PGA Tour.

A month later, Fred Couples made a surprising statement about Koepka’s future in LIV Golf.

“He wants to come back. I will say that I believe he really wants to come back and play the Tour. I think he genuinely craves the weekly competition and the camaraderie of the PGA Tour.”

Couples had admitted that he is close to Koepka and that the ex-LIV Golf pro had confided in him. Claiming that he was departing from LIV Golf was understandable. However, couple’s suggestion that he wants to move to the PGA Tour is what triggered Phil Mickelson.

And he didn’t care what sort of dynamic his fellow American pros shared.

“If it’s not true, he damaged a relationship that he cares about. If it is true, he took away Brooks’ control of the timeline and narrative.

Either way, this is a low-class jerk move by Fred,” Lefty said, hinting that he refuses to believe Koepka had any intent to leave LIV Golf, let alone join the PGA Tour.

Mickelson was certainly made to eat his words after Koepka terminated his LIV Golf contract a year early. Shockingly, reports also suggest that he might have to sacrifice $105 million for his critical move. He must have known that he would face the consequences of his actions.

So did he really negotiate with the PGA Tour before informing Scott O’Neil about his decision?

Interestingly, Eamon Lynch thinks that the PGA Tour was just waiting for LIV Golf to confirm the exit. Talking about the tweets from LIV Golf and the PGA Tour regarding Koepka, he said, “Much mockery of a statement that seemingly says nothing.

The Tour knew it was coming and intended to signal he’s welcome back, pending the internal housekeeping process to get there.”

The expert mentioned that Brian Rolapp’s team only took 23 minutes to release their message. That’s how eager they were to claim their prize. Koepka is an open game for them now, and they might poach him soon.

And if they do end up doing so, then how would the fans feel about it?

We asked our community what their thoughts were about the possibility of Brooks Koepka joining the PGA Tour in 2026. And they had some interesting reactions about it.

EssentiallyGolf readers react to Brooks Koepka joining the PGA Tour in 2026.We asked them, “Do You Think Brooks Koepka Will Play on the PGA Tour in Season 2026?” To that, 67.71% responded ‘yes,’ and the rest responded ‘no.’

Apart from their votes, fans left many interesting reactions. One of the fans said, “Even if the PGA holds steady on the 1-year rule, Koepka could likely get sponsors’ exemptions, and the PGA might not go ballistic the way they would have were he still a card-carrying LIV member.”

With the strict rules the PGA Tour has in place for Tour membership in 2026, it would be difficult to allow Koepka to just get a free place in the field. He will need to earn it like everyone else. Giving him sponsor exemptions will certainly be a valid solution.

But if Brian Rolapp ends up giving him a card straight out of LIV Golf, then he will lose the trust of the other PGA Tour members.

Interestingly, some fans want the PGA Tour to make it difficult for Koepka to retain his status. Someone wrote, “Hope the PGA Tour rejects him. Or makes it difficult for him to get back in.”

After jumping ship in 2022, some of the PGA Tour loyalists have been anti-LIV Golf. Even those who supported Koepka in the past, like this particular fan, have expressed that they don’t want him to get an easy way back into the Tour.

Fans were also asked, “Should Brooks Koepka Be Allowed Back on the Tour Without Fines?”

49% replied ‘yes,’ while the rest said ‘no.’

One of them said, “His situation when he opted for LIV was very different from others. He’d been playing injured for a year or two and never knew if he’d get it back.

The $100 million+ that he was offered was life-changing and understandably too much for someone in his situation to resist. Let him back into the PGA after 6 months or so.”

They believe that Koepka was at a low point in his career when he left for LIV Golf. The $100 million bonus offered was not only an opportunity for him to earn some money but also a chance to revive his career.

That proved to be beneficial, as he won the 2023 PGA Championship. But that was the extent of it. Now that he knows where he stands, he needs to return to the PGA Tour again and test himself against Scottie Scheffler & Co. to start winning regularly.

Another fan wrote, “His game is not a threat to anyone anymore. I mean, one top 25 finish over the past majors—he’s washed up. Decisions have consequences—no more free agency in golf.”

They believe Brooks Koepka isn’t a prominent golfer anymore. He used to be a star back in the day, but he is struggling to perform consistently. The 35-year-old missed three of the four cuts in the majors in 2025.

For him to get a direct ticket into the PGA Tour would be unfair to anyone who has earned their card by playing an entire season.