DeChambeau docked two shots after Open surge hits tall-grass snag
The R&A penalty turned Bryson DeChambeau’s 66 into a 68 and dropped him from solo second into a tie for fifth at Royal Birkdale.
By Georgia Hale · Staff Writer
3 min read
Bryson DeChambeau’s charge up the Open leaderboard took a two-shot hit after the R&A penalized him following his second round at Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport, England.
The ruling centered on DeChambeau’s second shot at the fifth hole, where the R&A said he improved the area of his intended swing in tall grass. The penalty changed his round from a 4-under 66 to a 68 and moved him from solo second at 7 under to a tie for fifth at 5 under after 36 holes.
Grant Moir, the R&A’s executive director of governance, said in a statement that DeChambeau received two strokes “for inadvertently improving the area of his intended swing, so intended backswing on the 5th hole when he was playing his second shot.”
Moir added that an improvement under the rules means changing a condition affecting the stroke in a way that gives a player a potential advantage. He said the rule still applies when the action is accidental, which the R&A said was the case with DeChambeau.
The R&A cited Rule 8.1 of the Rules of Golf. Moir said the rule is meant to uphold the principle of playing the course as it is found.
What happened on No. 5
DeChambeau’s tee shot on the par-4 fifth traveled 257 yards and finished far to the right, according to the tournament account. He hit a provisional drive in case the first ball could not be found.
When DeChambeau reached the original ball in the native area, he took several high steps through the tall fescue. The grass behind the ball appeared to flatten as he moved near it, according to the account of the incident.
DeChambeau then played the ball out of the thick grass and went on to make bogey at the hole. After the penalty was applied, his score for No. 5 became a triple-bogey 7.
The swing in the standings was immediate. Before the ruling, DeChambeau had moved to 7 under, one shot behind leader Lucas Herbert. After the two-shot adjustment, he joined the group at 5 under.
Leaderboard shuffle
ESPN’s leaderboard listed Herbert in first at 8 under after the second round was complete. Cameron Young, Ryan Gerard and Jackson Suber were tied for second at 6 under.
DeChambeau was shown tied for fifth at 5 under with Sam Burns and Si Woo Kim. A group at 4 under included Mike Wallace, Alex Fitzpatrick, Tommy Fleetwood, Jon Rahm, Bud Cauley, Scottie Scheffler, Thomas Detry, Robert MacIntyre and Francesco Molinari.
Asked by a reporter what happened after he signed his scorecard, DeChambeau did not discuss the penalty directly.
“I played great, actually,” DeChambeau said. “Are you guys having a good night? I’m going to hit some golf balls.”
He then went to the driving range and hit balls for several minutes. Asked by reporters whether DeChambeau would play the third round, his agent, Brett Falkoff, said, “We’ll see.”
This story draws on original reporting from ESPN.com.