Brooks Koepka admitted he was always confident of US Open victory after securing a maiden major success at Erin Hills.
The American became the seventh consecutive maiden major winner, posting a five-under 67 in Wisconsin to finish four strokes clear of Brian Harman and Hideki Matsuyama.
Koepka mixed five birdies with a sole blemish during an impressive display, with his 16-under-par total equalling the lowest 72-hole score in US Open history.
“It hasn’t sunk in, obviously, yet, and probably won’t for a few days,” Koepka said after his closing 67. “That’s probably one of the coolest things I’ve ever experienced.
“I felt like I was playing really good. Obviously, the wind picked up and I felt like that played right in my hand, and I felt confident all week.
“To feel as confident as I did on a Sunday of a major and coming down the stretch was pretty neat.”
Koepka began the day a shot back from overnight leader Brian Harman but moved top of the leaderboard with back-to-back birdies over his first two holes.
The world No 22 birdied the eighth but dropped a shot at the 10th, before following an eight-foot par save at the 13th with a run of three straight birdies to get to 16 under for the week.
“The par save on I think that built some confidence,” Koepka added. “It was one of those things where I need to make it.
“At the 10th I just hit a poor putt and at 11 I did the same thing, just trying to be aggressive and hitting the back of the hole.
“When that happened it did give me a lot of confidence. So I think that was kind of the changing point of the round for me.”
