Bryson DeChambeau’s 2-Shot Penalty at Open Championship Doesn’t Sit Well With Fans: “Would Never Penalize Rory Like This”

Bryson DeChambeau was charged with a 2-shot penalty in the 2nd round of The Open Championship which saw him fall 3 shots behind the lead.

Bryson DeChambeau’s 2-Shot Penalty at Open Championship Doesn’t Sit Well With Fans: “Would Never Penalize Rory Like This”

Bryson DeChambeau (Image via Instagram/@brysondechambeau)

Bryson DeChambeau was at the center stage on Friday during the 2nd Round of The Open Championship. After firing a score of 66 and being 1 shot off the lead, he was fined a 2-stroke penalty by the R&A officials for improving his lie on the 5th hole. This judgment did not sit well with the fans on social media.

DeChambeau, the 2-time major champion, came into this tournament after missing the cuts at the Masters Tournament, the PGA Championship and the U.S. Open. Never before in his career had he missed the cut in 3 straight majors.

Following an opening round score of 67, the American carded a round of 66 on Friday. After a birdie on the 4th hole, he made a bogey on the 5th hole. This was the only bogey of the day for him as he made birdies on holes 9, 11, 17 and 18 and fired a 4-under par score.

Once he wrapped up his round, he was 1-shot behind leader Lucas Herbert, who shot a low score of 62. DeChambeau not only made the cut but found himself in a good position to contend for the title.

However, the R&A officials brought him back to the 5th hole. They believed that the golfer had improved his lie while his ball landed in the thick. DeChambeau would take some practice swings and walk back and forth around the ball.

Chief Referee Grant Moir and tournament officials determined that DeChambeau breached Rule 8.1. While he kept appealing his case, the officials did not listen to him and assessed a 2-shot penalty.

DeChambeau was obviously not pleased with the decision. He was about to tee off with Herbert as the final pairing for the third round.

This penalty changed the course of the event. He went from solo 2nd to being T5, 3 shots behind his LIV Golf leaguemate.

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Fans shower support to Bryson DeChambeau following 2-shot penalty at British Open

Bryson DeChambeau‘s 2-shot penalty became the talking point of the British Open on Friday. The golfer, who was 1 shot behind the lead, later found himself 3 shots behind due to a late penalty handed out by the R&A officials.

Bryson DeChambeau
Bryson DeChambeau (Image via X/@NUCLRGOLF)

Fans on X came to support DeChambeau. Many of them blasted the rules officials for this controversial penalty. Meanwhile, one user wrote, “They would never penalize Rory like this” and accused the league of biased treatment towards DeChambeau.

Check out that and some other reactions from X below:

This decision comes at a time when DeChambeau has been criticized for his gameplay. Before the tournament, 6-time major champion Sir Nick Faldo claimed he had “zero clue” about strategy.

After the Crushers GC captain took a subtle dig at Faldo for this, the former World No.1 shared another video on Friday and claimed he was a “big fan” of DeChambeau.

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Bryson DeChambeau fired up after huge penalty at The Open Championship

Bryson DeChambeau was already fired up after his second-round performance on Friday. After the penalty drama, he is even more fired up and vowed to fight for the title over the weekend.

Bryson DeChambeau
Bryson DeChambeau (Image via Golf)

There were some talks that DeChambeau was thinking of not playing the event on Saturday. However, it was going to be unlikely that he would walk away.

Hours after the incident, he took to his X account and opened up about the decision. While he was disappointed with the ruling and did not agree with it, he has his eyes set on the prize at The Open Championship.

Obviously disappointed with the ruling. I don’t agree with it, but it is what it is. This fires me up. Onto the weekend. Let’s get it.

Bryson DeChambeau on X

DeChambeau will now tee off with Sam Burns in the third round at 3:30 p.m. British Time. The big question is, can DeChambeau pull off the win from this position? Only time will tell.

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