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U.S. Open champion Brooks Koepka loves baseball, is related to a former MVP

Brooks Koepka poses with the winning trophy after the U.S. Open golf tournament Sunday, June 18, 2017, at Erin Hills in Erin, Wis. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) (Chris Carlson/AP)

Brooks Koepka won his first Major tournament this weekend with a four-shot victory at the U.S. Open. The 27-year-old's 16-under total score also tied Rory McIlroy's record for the lowest in tournament history. But, as revealed in a 2015 interview with Golf Digest, another sport has always captured Koepka's heart:
"If I could do it over again, I'd play baseball -- 100 percent, no doubt," Koepka said.
Koepka said he comes from a "baseball family ... it's in my blood." Which, yes, it's very much in his blood. Former MVP and two-time World Series champion Dick Groat is his great uncle. That's a pretty cool great uncle with some very cool baseball friends:

Unfortunately, like many of us, Koepka quit life on the diamond because he couldn't hit the dinger:
"Could never hit a home run as a kid," Koepka said. "Maybe I was too small, but it drove me nuts. I kind of wish I'd stuck with it."
Hey, it's never too late to come back. Although we're guessing winning the U.S. Open feels pretty nice, too.  

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