Jon Rahm knows Bryson DeChambeau better than most, having spent the last two-and-a-half years playing alongside him on LIV Golf.
So who better to ask about DeChambeau’s rules infraction on Friday at The Open than Rahm himself?
The American caused huge controversy on Friday at Royal Birkdale after he was deemed to have trampled down the long grass behind his ball in the rough to the right of the fifth fairway.
Bryson DeChambeau received a two-stroke penalty as a result of his rules violation and he dropped from seven-under back to five-under.
The 32-year-old then proceeded to suggest that he might pull out of The Open Championship – a move that was not received well by his fellow players.
Now Jon Rahm has delivered his take on the Bryson DeChambeau situation.
Jon Rahm predicts what Bryson DeChambeau will do after two-stroke penalty at The Open
Rahm spoke to reporters after his third round at Birkdale on Saturday.
He responded when asked whether he believes DeChambeau will have gained extra motivation after what happened on Friday.
“There are some players that do really well when they have some, let’s say some extra going on off the course,“ Rahm said.
“Some of his better performances this year in Singapore and South Africa, he had — and I don’t know the extent of it — quite a bit going on off of course, quite a bit.
“Some of those things, one of them — I think it was more than one, but one of them that I learned, I wouldn’t wish on anybody, and he was able to perform incredibly well with a lot of added extra, let’s say, noise and distraction.
“It’s a lot easier to do in a regular event rather than an Open Championship when he thought he was going to go to sleep one shot back and finds himself three shots back.
“He seems to be doing just fine. Last I checked, he was at six-under.“
Jon Rahm gives his opinion on Bryson DeChambeau’s penalty
“We were the group behind, so I was aware when we got to scoring,“ he said.
“I can tell you, I’ve heard there’s multiple angles. I’ve only seen the face-on one. So I can’t really give you an idea.
“For people who have seen all the images, I think the consensus is that, although it wasn’t intentional, it was an infraction. That’s what I understand, but I haven’t seen. I guess there’s a down the line shot that I haven’t seen. I couldn’t tell you.
“What I saw face-on to me wasn’t enough for me to draw a conclusion. I wish I could tell you more. If you have the video, I’ll see it, but I haven’t seen it.“
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
