Brooks Koepka admits to Masters 'choke' and slams 'brutally slow' time wasters

Koepka shared the lead after an opening 65 at Augusta National and was four shots clear of eventual winner Jon Rahm when play was suspended due to bad weather in the third round.

However, that lead was immediately halved when play resumed on the final day, Koepka returning to the course and missing a par putt on the seventh as playing partner Rahm birdied the same hole.

Rahm went on to win his second major title by four shots and Koepka told the Pardon My Take podcast: "Yeah, I'd characterise that as a choke.

"It was pretty bad. I mean, c'mon. You've got a four-shot lead. I was playing good and just choked it away. But it's alright, we'll figure it out."

Asked about those comments at Oak Hill, Koepka initially said he was "just messing around" with the podcast hosts, but added: "It is choking, right? If you have a lead and cough it up, that's choking.

"But at the same time, I'm not dwelling on it. I've been in the lead, in that position a couple of times and haven't capitalised. I can't do it every single time. I'm not perfect. As long as I can learn from it, I'll be better off from it."

Koepka admitted he did not sleep on the Sunday evening of the Masters as he reflected on his closing 75, a round which took the final pair almost five hours to complete.

The former world number one hit out at the "brutally slow" pace of play of the penultimate group, with Patrick Cantlay widely held to be responsible for the slow going.

And Koepka believes that handing out penalty shots is the only solution.

"Honestly, I would start stroking guys," he said. "If you are going to take that long, you have to get stroked.

"There are certain circumstances where the wind switches, something like that, it's understandable, but taking a while is, I just think, unnecessary."

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