American Brooks Koepka says he finds the demands of playing in a Ryder Cup “odd” and mentally challenging as he prepares for next week’s contest against Europe.
The four-time major champion will play in the contest for a third time at Whistling Straits from 24-26 September.
However, he told Golf Digest: “It’s hectic. There’s no time to decompress.
“The mental side, you have to be able to turn it off. Sometimes, the power comes from being able to turn it on but I get power from turning it off.”
Koepka contributed three points from four matches on his debut as the US won 17-11 at Hazeltine in 2016 and 1½ points in defeat at Le Golf National in 2018.
“I don’t want to say it’s a bad week,” he added. “We’re just so individualised and everybody has their routine and different way of doing things.
“And now we have to go to a meeting at this time, or go do this, or go do that. It’s the opposite of what happens in a major week.
“If I break down a major week, it’s so chill. I go to the course, play nine holes. I go to the gym. Other than that, I’m sitting watching television, taking my mind off the golf.”
Koepka said that the week is “so far from my normal routine” that it leaves him “dead” by the end of Sunday’s singles.
“It’s tough,” he added. “There are times where I’m like, I won my match. I did my job. What do you want from me?
“I know how to take responsibility for the shots I hit every week. Now, somebody else hit a bad shot and left me in a bad spot, and I know this hole is a loss. That’s new, and you have to change the way you think about things.
“You go from an individual sport every week to a team sport one week a year.
“There are meetings and team building, and you’re whisked away for a lot of things like pictures and all that.
“Under regular conditions, I take naps a lot. I might take an hour, hour-and-a-half nap, or just chill on the couch. There’s no time to do that at the Ryder Cup.
“It’s more demanding than I’m used to, and there’s a lot of emotion there, so by Sunday, you’re just dead.”
