Scottie Scheffler Claims Not Being Fan Of “Personal Jabs” Following Rory McIlroy-Bryson DeChambeau Saga at The Open

Scottie Scheffler finished T4 at The Open Championship during his title defense at the Royal Birkdale course.

Scottie Scheffler Claims Not Being Fan Of “Personal Jabs” Following Rory McIlroy-Bryson DeChambeau Saga at The Open

Rory McIlroy, Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau (Image via Imago)

The Open Championship last week sparked some more drama between Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau following the latter’s 2-shot penalty in the 2nd round. Ahead of the 3M Open this week, Scottie Scheffler claimed he was not a fan of “personal jabs.“

On Friday, DeChambeau initially fired a score of 66 with 5 birdies and 1 bogey. However, the R&A officials later determined that he had improved his lie on the 5th hole through his backswings and handed him a 2-shot penalty.

This saw his score go from 66 to 68, with his bogey turning into a triple bogey. The LIV Golf star, who was 1 shot behind his league mate Lucas Herbert, fell 3 shots behind him following this penalty.

DeChambeau kept on pleading his case with the officials. The whole discussion lasted more than an hour. This led to a hold-up in play as late finishers were unable to sign their scorecards. There was also a delay in the release of 3rd round tee times.

McIlroy was not fond of this and attacked DeChambeau. Following the 3rd round, the 6-time major champion accused him of holding the tournament “hostage“ and claimed that the officials’ decision was correct.

In recent years, McIlroy and DeChambeau have been far from friends. They found themselves competing against each other in fierce battles at the 2024 U.S. Open and the 2025 Masters Tournament.

While fans and some golf media have termed the two as rivals, Scottie Scheffler does not believe that rivalries exist in golf. The World No.1 also expressed that he was not a fan of throwing personal shade at others.

I’ve never been a big fan of personal jabs. I don’t think that rivalry is a big thing in golf just because, like I said, my biggest rivalry week in and week out is the golf course.

Scottie Scheffler told the reporters

DeChambeau eventually finished T14 with scores of 69 and 72 in the third and final round. McIlroy, on the other hand, finished T40 with scores of 72-67-69-71.

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Scottie Scheffler had expressed that Bryson DeChambeau is not a “cheater”

Bryson DeChambeau’s 2-shot penalty dominated the headlines over the weekend. As debates regarding his penalty raged on, Scottie Scheffler claimed that he was not a “cheater.”

Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau
Scottie Scheffler and Bryson DeChambeau at the 2026 Open Championship (Image via Golf)

After Rory McIlroy attacked him, several golfers were asked about their opinion regarding this penalty. Many came to the defense of DeChambeau.

At first, Scheffler remained silent. Following the 3rd round, the American international claimed he had a lot to say but did not want to comment with the tournament ongoing.

Once the event was done, Scheffler broke his silence. The PGA Tour star said he had known DeChambeau for a long time and that he was not a “cheater.”

I’ve known him for a long time, and he’s a lot of things, but he’s definitely not a cheater. … When you’re watching him there from that camera angle, maybe he was a touch careless around his ball, but I don’t think he did anything intentionally.

Scottie Scheffler said regarding Bryson DeChambeau

Scheffler found himself under some backlash as well on Sunday. After he lost his ball on the par-5 17th hole after a bold approach on the 2nd shot, he was handed a Temporary Immovable Obstruction (TIO) relief.

A golfer has 3 minutes to find their ball after their shot. If they are unable to do so, they are handed a 1-shot penalty. The officials and Scheffler kept on searching for his ball. However, it had sailed far away to the left of the grandstand.

He was thus given a TIO relief. Under this relief, golfers are not penalized and are given a free drop. The 2025 Open Champion made full use of this advantage and made a birdie on this hole.

With the DeChambeau incident, many fans voiced their frustration against this ruling. In the end, Scheffler failed to make birdie on the last hole and had to settle for a bogey, which saw him finish T4 at 7-under par for the tournament, 3 behind winner Ryan Fox.

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