Matthew Wolff was shocked by what Brooks Koepka, his Smash GC Captain, had to say in regards to his attitude and work ethic. He responded to this with a long statement to Sports Illustrated.
“I read SI’s interview with Captain Brooks Koepka, and I was disappointed beyond words. I joined his Team 2023 with great optimism, both for my new home in Team Smash as well as the opportunity to learn and be around a player as renowned as Brooks. As with everyone who has played at the highest levels, I’ve had moments of competition in the past where I felt I let myself and others down. This has been a difficult experience for me. It is well known that I have had mental health challenges both on and off the course. “I deal with these challenges every single day.”
“However, although my 2023 season was not all I had hoped to achieve, I’ve made positive steps in managing my life, and I feel Ike is improving my game. It is heartbreaking to hear in the media that my team leader has given me up. This is not the kind of thing a member of a team wants to hear from their leader. I believe we all agree that these comments could have been handled differently. But I will never give up and keep moving forward. Although the results of my course may not be as positive as they appear, I am trying to win a bigger game in life.
“Finally I trust Brooks will do what’s best for our team. It’s difficult to believe that his comments from his recent SI interview are in line with these priorities. This is my final comment on the matter. Today I will be at the Centurion club to try to help our team this week. “I appreciate your continued support, and the respect you show me for my privacy.”
Koepka said to SI earlier in the week, before the LIV Golf London tournament at the Centurion Golf club in Hertfordshire (England), that he “basically gave up” on Wolff, and that the former PGA Tour winner, 24, was wasting his talents.
Koepka stated, “I don’t think that is competing when you give up on your round or quit. “I don’t like that.” You don’t work hard. It’s tough. It’s difficult to maintain a team dynamic with a guy who won’t put in any effort. He’ll quit the course, break his clubs, get down, and have bad body language. I’ve given up on him. He has a lot of potential, but the talent is wasted.
Wolff was on Koepka’s team prior to this season, and many teams were interested in him after LIV’s eight-event debut season of 2022. To start the season the 2019 3M Open champion finished T-7 (T-10), T-5 (T-5) but since then has been in the bottom half of leaderboards with finishes of T44,T-41,T-30,WD and 44th.
Wolff resigned before the final round at LIV’s Washington, D.C. event in May, and his name was then removed from Smash GC social media accounts. Wolff earned $2,951,667 in eight events so far this year and is currently ranked higher than Koepka’s brother Chase (45) in LIV’s standings.
