Bryson DeChambeau should arguably not be given the chance to tee it up at next year’s Open Championship at The Old Course.
DeChambeau failed to add to his tally of top 10 finishes at The Open last week at Royal Birkdale. Nevertheless, the LIV Golf star dominated the headlines after a dramatic conclusion to Friday’s second round.
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The 32-year-old was furious after being handed a two-shot penalty by the R&A officials. It was deemed that DeChambeau had unintentionally improved the lie around his ball while in the thick rough on the fifth hole.
Various video clips of the incident showed DeChambeau stomping around the ball as he assessed the shot he needed to hit.
The first thing that should be said is that many, including myself, believe that the penalty was harsh.
Bryson DeChambeau was right to feel annoyed at his penalty, but handled the incident awfully
While DeChambeau was taking some heavy steps near his ball, it must not be forgotten that he was wading his way through long grass. The grass was also growing in a number of different directions, so it was always going to be difficult for the two-time US Open champion to avoid any problems.
His actions look clumsy. However, there would have been plenty of players who probably felt extremely concerned after seeing what DeChambeau was given a penalty for.
But any sympathy for DeChambeau has been well and truly lost now.
DeChambeau threatened to not continue playing the tournament, before waiting several hours to publicly confirm that he would return to Royal Birkdale for his third round on Saturday.
And just when it seemed that his reaction could not have been worse, DeChambeau reportedly threatened to call President Donald Trump as part of his attempts to get the penalty overturned.
The Telegraph was among a number of outlets to report on DeChambeau’s desire to get the President involved.
Thankfully, DeChambeau did start his third round two shots worse off than when play on Friday concluded.
However, that does not mean that he should not face further action.
What Bryson DeChambeau has done since The Open Championship is more worrying than his behaviour at Birkdale
It is remarkable just how often players accept a ruling without complaint. For example, Joaquin Niemann showed tremendous class after last month’s US Open with how he dealt with a two-shot penalty.
Niemann was penalised for throwing a club a considerable distance at Shinnecock Hills. Despite the lack of consistency – Jon Rahm was seen kicking a club off the tee at the US Open, while he was warned for launching an iron at The Open – the Chilean insisted that he had no complaints with the decision.
DeChambeau tried to get the R&A to reverse their decision by threatening to not play, and then get in contact with the President. It is hard to overstate just how dangerous a precedent it would have set had DeChambeau got his way.
And what is perhaps even more alarming than what DeChambeau did in the heat of the moment is the way he has handled the situation since.
He did not speak to the media once after the opening round at the final major of the year.
Meanwhile, everyone associated with LIV Golf appears to have thrown a protective ring around DeChambeau during their UK event at JCB.
Somehow, not one member of the media who attended has thought to ask whether he thought his behaviour at The Open was appropriate.
He did get the opportunity to speak about just how many autographs he signs for youngsters during a tournament.
“Yeah, I think they’re the future of the game. I’m not going to be here forever. I’ve said this story numerous times, but as a kid I was inspired by a few professionals that stayed around and signed some autographs for me after I showed up in a clinic and hit some great drives. They all stayed for me and signed my hat. They were like, we’ll see you out there one day. That just was a huge pull to my heart that that really matters,” he said.
“You’re going to get the passionate side of me out at the golf course trying to win championships, and then you’re going to get the soft side, it’s more than just a game. It’s for these kids, these individuals.”
Perhaps that was the time to mention that he had set a really bad example with his actions at The Open.
There should have been a public apology for how he acted, whether that came on social media, on YouTube, or during a LIV press conference.
There was a lot of support for Oakmont banning Wyndham Clark after he damaged lockers during last year’s US Open.
DeChambeau threatened to damage something even more important at Royal Birkdale. And the lack of public remorse in the days since should convince the R&A to provisionally suspend him from next year’s Open Championship at St Andrews.
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