DeChambeau Penalty Overshadows The Open
Bryson DeChambeau received a two-stroke penalty after Friday’s second round at The Open when R&A officials ruled he had inadvertently improved his swing path on the fifth hole by trampling down knee-high rough behind his ball. The American believed a round of 66 had left him one shot off the lead at the halfway stage, but the penalty shifted the tournament’s momentum before the weekend.
Scottie Scheffler, who was playing alongside DeChambeau when the incident occurred, defended his fellow American after Sunday’s final round. “I’ve never seen him cheat once, whether we were having a putting or chipping contest, or anytime we played amateur golf, I never saw anything suspicious,” Scheffler said, adding that DeChambeau may have been careless but acted without intent.
Rory McIlroy took a sharply different view, stating there was “no doubt” DeChambeau had improved his backswing line and accusing his rival of holding the Open “hostage.” The Northern Irishman admitted he is “not fond of” DeChambeau, while the Birkdale crowd offered a warm reception on Saturday mixed with isolated shouts inferring the American was a “cheat.”
R&A chief executive Mark Darbon described the penalty as a “clear-cut decision from a rules perspective,” emphasizing the violation was accidental but the rule still applied. DeChambeau, who declined to speak to media all week, said the decision would “fire” him up for the weekend. He shot rounds of 69 and 72. That left him six shots behind eventual champion Ryan Fox. Scheffler suggested video angles made reviews inconclusive and called for stricter policing to preserve the game’s traditions.