Koepka Plays Nine Holes at Shinnecock Hills but Reports Incomplete Grip Recovery Ahead of U.S. Open

U.S. Open. Koepka, 36, withdrew before the final round of the RBC Canadian Open on Sunday after weakness and numbness developed in the pinkie and ring fingers of his left hand.

The symptoms first appeared while he watched television Friday night and flared again during his warmup Saturday. Koepka had imaging of his neck performed Sunday in Canada and again Monday in New York. He said the current episode stems from a flare-up of his ulnar nerve, which runs down the arm and can be irritated by repetitive elbow bending.

"It's getting better day by day," Koepka said. "I would say yesterday was pretty much how it was Sunday, but today there was quite a bit of improvement. " He added that grip strength is not fully restored.

"I don't think the grip strength is a hundred percent, but it's good enough," Koepka said. "There's absolutely no pain, which is kind of the weirdest part of this whole thing. " Koepka described the mechanical effect during swings.

"The movement's fine," he said. "It's literally just my ring finger and pinkie finger. [During] the transition coming down, they would come off. It felt like they were coming off the golf club, but they were just very weak.

Koepka previously herniated his C5 and C6 vertebrae in 2021. U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills in 2018, closing with a 68 to finish at 1 over par, one stroke ahead of Tommy Fleetwood. Since returning to the PGA Tour from the LIV Golf League on January 12, Koepka has recorded six top-25 finishes in 12 starts.