"I'm a die-hard fan, man" - Brooks Koepka explains his 'cone' remark towards Aaron Ekblad 

Brooks Koepka was seen cursing Florida Panthers' Aaron Ekblad during their weekend game. The clip went viral online and Koepka received criticism from fans online. Koepka explained what happened during that time.

In his LIV Golf pre-event press conference, Koepka was quoted saying via GolfMagic:

"Yeah, he gave up a bad goal I think midway through the third, and I just felt like if they didn't win that game they weren't going to make the Playoffs."

"I'm a die-hard fan, man. When they do something good, I'm the first one to cheer them, I'll text these guys."

Earlier, Ekblad also responded to the cone incident. He told Sportsnet's, Luke Fox:

“We’re not buddies. Never be buddies.”

In the viral clip, Koepka can be heard screaming 'f****** traffic cone' towards the Panthers defenseman. He picks up a cone directed towards Ekblad and goes on to say: 'Ekblad! You s*ck'.

---

What next for Brooks Koepka?

Brooks Koepka will next be seen at the Orange County National Course this week for the LIV Golf Orlando, which begins on Friday, March 31. The third event of the Saudi-backed league will have a similar 12-teams 48-player format in the team portion.

Charles Howell III won the season opener of the Mayakoba event and Danny Lee won the LIV Golf Tucson event. In the team portion, the Crushers GC and Fireballs GC have won one event each this season.

Brooks Koepka won the Jeddah Invitational last year and is still in search of a win since then. This year too, the 32-year-old golfer has finished in 29th and 31st place in the two events he has played.

Here are the 12 teams:

• 4 Aces GC: Dustin Johnson*, Patrick Reed, Pat Perez, Peter Uihlein
• Cleeks GC: Martin Kaymer*, Bernd Wiesberger, Richard Bland, Graeme McDowell
• Crushers GC: Bryson DeChambeau*, Paul Casey, Anirban Lahiri, Charles Howell III
• Fire Balls GC: Sergio Garcia*, Abe Ancer, Carlos Ortiz, Eugenio Chacarra
• HY Flyers GC: Phil Mickelson*, James Piot, Brendan Steele, Cam Tringale
• Iron Heads GC: Kevin Na*, Scott Vincent, Danny Lee, Sihwan Kim
• Majesticks GC: Ian Poulter* and Henrik Stenson*, Lee Westwood, Sam Horsfield
• RangeGoats GC: Bubba Watson*, Talor Gooch, Thomas Pieters, Harold Varner III
• Ripper GC: Cam Smith*, Marc Leishman, Matt Jones, Jed Morgan
• Smash GC: Brooks Koepka*, Chase Koepka, Matt Wolff, Jason Kokrak
• Stinger GC: Louis Oosthuizen*, Branden Grace, Dean Burmester, Charl Schwartzel
• Torque GC: Joaquin Niemann*, Mito Pereira, Sebastian Munoz, David Puig

---

Friday tee details for the LIV Golf Orlando event

• Hole 1 - Bubba Watson, Patrick Reed, Sergio Garcia
• Hole 2 - Dustin Johnson, Charl Schwartzel, Phil Mickelson
• Hole 3 - Brooks Koepka, Danny Lee, Ian Poulter
• Hole 4 - Bryson DeChambeau, Joaquin Niemann, Cameron Smith
• Hole 6 - Paul Casey, Louis Oosthuizen, Harold Varner III
• Hole 7 - Charles Howell III, Marc Leishman, Carlos Ortiz
• Hole 8 - Branden Grace, Jason Kokrak, Talor Gooch
• Hole 9 - Thomas Pieters, Cameron Tringale, Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra
• Hole 10 - Graeme McDowell, Mito Pereira, Pat Perez
• Hole 11 - Andy Ogletree, David Puig, Bernd Wiesberger
• Hole 12 - Dean Burmester, James Piot, Laurie Canter
• Hole 14 - Kevin Na, Matt Jones, Sebastián Muñoz
• Hole 15 - Jediah Morgan, Richard Bland, Scott Vincent
• Hole 16 - Chase Koepka, Sam Horsfield, Sihwan Kim
• Hole 17 - Brendan Steele, Henrik Stenson, Peter Uihlein
• Hole 18 - Abraham Ancer, Lee Westwood, Matthew Wolff