Bryson DeChambeau Completes Incredible Reversal at British Open

PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — A first-round 78 effectively eliminated him from contention, but Bryson DeChambeau battled to make the cut on Friday and then put together an impressive weekend at Royal Portrush to secure just his second top-10 finish at the British Open.

And if he wasn’t a lock already, DeChambeau undoubtedly sealed a spot on the U.S. Ryder Cup team.

Because he will not earn any more points following the Open, as LIV Golf League events do not get them, there is a chance he could fall out of the automatic qualifying positions that will be determined next month.

DeChambeau was a likely pick of U.S. captain Keegan Bradley regardless of how he finished here but a final-round 64 after shooting 65-68 the previous two days was a strong turnaround for the two-time U.S. Open champion.

“It was a fun three days,” said DeChambeau, who finished at 275, 9 under par after playing the last three rounds in 16 under par. “I was really proud of the way I turned it around and gave myself actually some hope on the third round, after I was 3-under. That first nine I thought, O.K., if I go shoot 4 or 5 under on the back and give myself a chance on Sunday, throw myself up there and go out and play just as good as I did, like I did today, I could be right up there and giving Scottie [Scheffler] a run.

“Scottie’s in a league of his own right now. I played with him a lot in college, and he was not that good, so he’s figured out a lot of stuff since then. It’s really impressive to see and something we can all learn from for sure.”

DeChambeau said he spoke to Bradley briefly this week and was given an inspirational message—that he would not disclose—in his locker.

“It meant a lot,” he said. “This year’s no joke. We’re tired of it. We’re tired of losing.”

The U.S. lost the Ryder Cup to Europe in 2023 in Rome and DeChambeau was part of a winning team in 2021 at Whistling Straits.

Although he failed to add to his major total this year, DeChambeau still had a strong year, playing in the final group with Masters winner Rory McIlroy, where he tied for fifth, and then tying for second behind Scheffler at the PGA Championship. He missed the cut last month at the U.S. Open.

In 10 LIV Golf events this year, DeChambeau has six top-10 finishes including a victory in Korea. LIV has a tournament next week in England.

“Normally I’d be super pissed and frustrated, which I was rightfully so, because I thought I played pretty well and shot 7 over,” DeChambeau said of his poor first round. “I said to myself, I’m going to do something different this time. I’ve been working on myself and how I am and how I act and whatnot. I’m going to transition my brain to say, look, I’m going to give it everything I have tomorrow, no matter what happens. I’m going to go full force, attack like it’s Sunday of a major championship, and that’s what I did.

“That’s what I did for the past three days, I said, every time is go time, like you’ve got to come back from five, six back. That’s the mentality I had. I said I’m going to give myself a chance. I’m not going to pout. I’m going to be free. It’s Sunday of a major. I’m going to be free. Kind of like what Scottie is doing right now.”