Bryson DeChambeau talks ‘difficulties’ from the Open Championship
Bryson DeChambeau, following Thursday’s first round of the LIV Golf event in the UK, spoke to the media for the first time since being suspended from the Open Championship – and briefly touched on the hoopla surrounding his much-anticipated tie for 14th at Royal Birkdale.
DeChambeau opened with an eight-under round at JCB Country Club, the second-best score of the day. After that, he spoke to reporters for the first time since before the Open, when he refused to give access to the media.
In this session, DeChambeau reflected on his round — he bogeyed his first three holes, endured two bogeys and “played well today,” he said — before reflecting on the events of the past week.
Specifically, DeChambeau was asked about his fight in “difficulty,” referring to the two-stroke penalty test to improve the conditions around his ball on Friday’s fifth hole. DeChambeau strongly disagreed with the televised back-and-forth with the rules officials that attracted spectators, delayed tournament organizers, demoted DeChambeau to second place and received a flurry of action from around the world.
So what did you take in the week?
“Yeah, I made it,” said DeChambeau with a smile, referring to his three incredible MCs at last year’s majors, making the tour a part of his winning streak of the year. “No, it was a good fight. I wish I could have given more on Saturday and Sunday. I felt like I could have done it. Except for the 5th hole and being three on that hole and then the 11th hole, that’s six shots. That’s tied for the lead right there. Two holes and I’m there with the Claret Jug.”
After a two-stroke penalty check, DeChambeau came up with a triple-bogey 7 on No. 5 on Friday. He lost the ball at No. 11 during Sunday’s final round en route to another triple bogey and shot two over 72; That left him six shots off the pace of winner Ryan Fox.
The only man ahead of DeChambeau by one round at this LIV event is Lucas Herbert, who was also in the final groups over the weekend at the Open and finished T6. Asked if the show was coming “after a week,” DeChambeau got philosophical.
“Look, golf is golf, right?” he said. “I wish [Lucas and I] He would have gone to war last week. It wasn’t like that. But life goes on. There are hard times in everyone’s life, and I was passionate about what I believed in and what I thought was right. For me, now it’s where it is, and you keep walking on it. You keep moving forward.”
OK, so DeChambeau didn’t elaborate on the matter. There’s a lot more we’d like to hear from him at some point, like what he thinks about the decision now, how close he was to walking out of the event, whether he considered asking for the President’s help, which he did with the aggressive and varied response to the penalty, from Sam Burns to Max Homa to Brandel Chamblee to Scottie Scheffler to Rory more McIlro.
DeChambeau also did not comment on the subject of this week’s LIV event, which comes as financial questions surround the rest of the season and the league’s fundraising efforts to continue next season. Earlier this week, the Asian Tour announced it was pulling out of its deal with LIV in favor of a deal with DP World and the PGA Tours, which was a blow to LIV’s wider schedule. There are also questions about its future plan following the withdrawal of Saudi funding; Cleeks captain Martin Kaymer was among the players who said they expected the team’s 2026 $40-million contract scheduled for Michigan in August to be canceled.
CEO Scott O’Neil told the captains to remain optimistic about potential investors for “LIV 2.0” next season; expect to hear more in the coming weeks as LIV returns to the United States. The league’s next event is at Trump Bedminster in New Jersey.
For now, DeChambeau is focusing on golf for the immediate future.
“For me, I’m excited for Lucas tomorrow. That will be great,” he said. “But there are three more days. We are here to win this tournament this week. The Crushers are here, and so am I. Individually and as a team.”
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