AUGUSTA, GEORGIA | The arc of Bryson DeChambeau’s still evolving golf career is equal parts curious and captivating, not unlike the many mysteries that the 30-year-old has sought to unravel over the years.
DeChambeau revels in his unconventionality, and he has never been afraid to stand on the edge to admire the view. To watch DeChambeau work and to hear him talk about the many nuances of golf, it’s easy to believe his joy is in the pursuit of something that even science – and his steadfast belief in it – can’t fully explain.
On a day such as Thursday, when the predicted thunderstorms spared Augusta National but the wind did not and the Masters came to life under gradually clearing skies, DeChambeau found himself in a state of grace, shooting a wrinkle-free 7-under-par 65 that put him atop the leaderboard when play was suspended because of darkness at 7:51 p.m.
An interesting side note to DeChambeau’s first round is that LIV Golf CEO Greg Norman was there to watch, working the gallery ropes to see the 13 players from LIV take on Augusta National as golf’s civil war continues. Norman was easy to spot – he swapped out the white straw hat worn Wednesday for a black one on Thursday – and was willing to chat with fans.
The saber-rattling and hardline negotiations between the PGA Tour and Norman’s Saudi-funded rival circuit can take a break during Masters week.
Ask DeChambeau to explain the powers of magnetism and he can probably do it in detail. He has his own magnetism and, in the way like poles push against each other, DeChambeau brings some of that with him, too.
Even when he was winning the U.S. Open at Winged Foot in the COVID year of 2020 and he was gulping down protein shakes and bulking up to play golf like a Marvel character, DeChambeau never has drawn the love that Rory McIlroy does nor the deference that Scottie Scheffler now inspires.
For all of his know-it-all tendencies, DeChambeau can smile at some of the things he’s said and done – we’ll get to that unfortunate comment that Augusta National is “a par-67 for me” shortly – and he is almost always polite and willing to engage.
To many, DeChambeau has become one of the game’s villains because he took the millions offered to him by LIV Golf and he has been an aggressive and outspoken ambassador for changing many of golf’s traditional ways.
Leaning into a challenging day, DeChambeau gave a demonstration Thursday that served as a reminder that while he may not be on the PGA Tour any longer, he still possesses a rare talent.
Before the LIV event last week in Miami, DeChambeau spoke about the need to bring professional golf back together, but his plea lacked something that it badly needed: an ounce of self-awareness.
“We can give input. We can have little moments where we say, hey, we think this would be a good idea or that would be a good idea, but ultimately, it’s up to the guys up top to figure it out and figure it out quickly because we can’t keep going in this direction. It’s not sustainable, for sure,” DeChambeau said.
Choice words from one of the players who took a gold-plated sledgehammer to professional golf.
Leaning into a challenging day, DeChambeau gave a demonstration Thursday that served as a reminder that while he may not be on the PGA Tour any longer, he still possesses a rare talent.
He has shed some of his bulk and doesn’t chase clubhead speed quite as relentlessly as he did – he still can crank his ball speed up to 200 mph when he needs it, he says – but DeChambeau is still the ultimate golf nerd, a term he would appreciate.
Whether it’s maturity, the effects on his body or more likely the weekend at Greenbrier last summer when he shot 61-58 on consecutive days, DeChambeau has tempered the mad scientist routine for something more practical.
“Every day I get up, just swing the same way you have been for the past seven, eight months since I put it in play at Greenbrier and just go back to those feels every single day,” DeChambeau said.
“I know that works. I mean, I shot 58 with it.”
Push DeChambeau to be more specific and the explanation is simple.
“The motion is really just tilt the shoulder to swing more inside out. That’s literally all it is,” DeChambeau said.
Pretty dull stuff from a guy who can talk about equipment and swing dynamics the way Steve Jobs could talk computers.
Sometimes, simple works.
In 2020, DeChambeau popped off about Augusta National being a par-67 course for him, considering his power and his ability to overpower the par-5s. That November, with the Masters rescheduled because of COVID, DeChambeau shot 2-under-par 286 (based on the traditional par-72) and was beaten by 63-year-old Bernhard Langer.
DeChambeau suggested Thursday that his comment was misinterpreted but acknowledged that it wasn’t the smartest thing he’s ever said, especially considering his last six Masters results have been T38, T29, T34, T46, MC, MC.
“I’m a very passionate individual, and some people can take that in a pretty negative way. Others can take it in a way of, wow, he’s trying to pave a pathway and his own path.” – Bryson DeChambeau
“You know, you mess up,” he said. “I’m not a perfect person. Everybody messes up. You learn from your mistake, and that was definitely one.”
It feels as if everyone is playing nice this week and it’s enough to create hope that sooner rather than later the pro game will find a resolution to the problems money and ego have created.
DeChambeau has a role in that, jumping off the high dive into LIV’s new world and, intentionally or not, he’s come off as a provocateur.
“I’m a very passionate individual, and some people can take that in a pretty negative way. Others can take it in a way of, wow, he’s trying to pave a pathway and his own path,” DeChambeau said.
“I think that’s a pretty big misconception; that I’m divisive. I’m really not. I don’t try to be. It may come off that way because I’m passionate about certain things and certain subjects. That’s up for interpretation and opinion.
“And, look, I respect everybody’s opinion and what they think. I have no issues, and I understand the pathway that I pave is going to be viewed in multiple ways.”
That pathway, cluttered with roadblocks at Augusta National through the years, took a turn in a different direction Thursday.