Bryson DeChambeau is embroiled in controversy at The Open.
He finished his second round one shot back off the lead, responding to the critics emphatically after missing the cut at the other three majors this year.
But he was then docked two shots when the R&A deemed him to have improved his lie in the fescue on the fifth hole.
DeChambeau’s wayward tee shot left him in the deep rough, and before he took his shot he trampled around his ball. He was deemed to have unintentionally improved his lie in a controversial ruling.
Golf Channel analyst Smylie Kaufman returned to the scene of the incident at Royal Birkdale to investigate, and said how players must be feeling about the ruling.
Smylie Kaufman said most players would agree about Bryson DeChambeau penalty
Kaufman, reporting for the Golf Channel, went to the third hole to see for himself why DeChambeau received his penalty.
After looking at the fescue and replicating DeChambeau’s lie, he said that players will think he deserved a penalty for the way he trampled on the grass.
Kaufman said, “I think as a player you are entitled to be able to stand behind your ball to make sure that you can look at your shot, but you have to do it in a way that does not affect the golf shot.
“You can’t change the conditions around you. I think most players would tend to agree that in this situation that is probably a step over the line.
Was Bryson DeChambeau's penalty unfair?
He was penalised two shots following an incident on the fifth hole…
“If it were me I definitely wouldn’t feel great about it, because if it’s fescue it can definitely affect the golf swing. It would be one that I would be concerned about as a player.”
If DeChambeau affected his lie, even unintentionally, then it’s a penalty. And that includes clearing the way for his backswing or downswing.
There’s little doubt that he did affect the conditions around his swing, so it’s hard to argue the penalty, as much as DeChambeau is trying to.
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