Bryson DeChambeau Silences Critics with Lowest First-Round Score at The Open

Bryson DeChambeau silences critics with his lowest first-round score at The Open Thursday's round was 11 strokes better than his start at Royal Portrush at this championship a year ago.

What happened?

Bryson DeChambeau fired back at his critics on Thursday by letting his clubs do the talking. The two-time U.S. Open champion carded five birdies en route to shooting 3-under 67 at Royal Birkdale Golf Club and sits one stroke off the lead early in the first round of the 154th British Open. It marks just the second time in nine starts that he’s broken par in the first round of the Open and his lowest first-round score in the championship. It also was 11 strokes better than his start at Royal Portrush in Northern Ireland at this championship a year ago.

Why it matters for Bryson DeChambeau

DeChambeau, 32, has missed the cut at the Masters, PGA Championship and U.S. Open this season. Should he miss the cut this week, he would be the first multiple-major winner under the age of 40 to miss all four cuts in a season. His game has fallen off from two years ago when he won the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2 and was in the midst of a stretch of six top-10s across eight majors.

What comes next?

DeChambeau birdied the first two holes, sinking putts of 9 and 18 feet. He launched his tee shot at the 380-yard par-4 10th hole to light rough within 23 yards of the green and pitched to 4 feet. He made his first bogey of the day at the par-5 14th, but at 16, he wedged to inside 5 feet for another birdie and one hole later at the par 5, he chipped to a foot for his fifth birdie of the day. That lifted him into a tie for the lead but he missed an 8-foot par putt at the last.

After his round, DeChambeau declined to speak to the media, just as he had done at recent majors, and instead provided a few remarks to a media official. “Definitely satisfying. Any time you get off to a great start, it's awesome, but there's three more days, dude,” he said. “There's still a lot of golf to be played. But ultimately from my perspective I was really excited about the way I played.”

Nick Faldo also questioned DeChambeau’s game plan. “He has zero clue of strategy," Faldo said. While it’s unclear whether DeChambeau was directing his comments at Faldo, DeChambeau complimented his strategy on Thursday. “I feel like I did a really good job today of being incredibly strategic and focused super hard on placing it in the right places,” he said to a media official. “Besides 18, I placed the ball in some good areas. I just need to hit more fairways. Other than that, I feel like my strategy was nice today.”

England’s Tyrrell Hatton, who plays on LIV Golf too, was in DeChambeau’s threesome and said he wasn’t surprised to see DeChambeau climb into contention. "He flights the ball great. His ball flight today was really good. He didn't really hit many bad shots," Hatton said to the press. "He's an amazing player, and it shouldn't really surprise anyone that he's doing well."

What's next for Bryson DeChambeau?

But DeChambeau has struggled at the Open more than any of the other majors, with just two top 10s. In the past, DeChambeau conceded that he hadn’t cracked the code at the Open. The question now is whether he can build on this strong start and make a deeper run in the tournament.

category: player_focus