In the 120th U.S Open at Winged Foot National Golf Club, the course was destined to show its teeth. After low rounds on Thursday, it did just that the rest of the way to all but one golfer. The “mad-scientist”, Bryson DeChambeau (+2800) did what not many thought was possible: out-muscle the mammoth 7,400 yard par 70 course.
The 27-year-old claimed his first major this weekend, shooting an impressive 264, six shots under par. He did it in the fashion he has since the restart, which is changing the game, hitting the ball as far as he can. DeChambeau did it in dominant fashion as well, running away with the championship on Sunday’s final round, being the only player on Sunday to shoot under par. In fact, it was a dominant weekend all-around, as he didn’t go shoot over par all four days. This marked the sixth U.S Open held at the grounds of Winged Foot, with DeChambeau being just the second winner to card a score under-par. He also became the first winner to score par or better all four rounds at Winged Foot.
Since arriving on the PGA Tour, DeChambeau has gone about the game in a way never seen. A physics major from his time at SMU, DeChambeau uses science to help navigate his golf game. Calculating things like air pressure and density in his shots, that’s just the beginning of his unorthodox game. He’s implemented same-length irons, something that’s very out of the ordinary. He used the quarantine and three-month break to change his game in another way. DeChambeau put on 30 pounds with the idea to become the longest hitting player in the game, and that’s just what he accomplished.
His new style of game, mashing the golf ball as far as he physically can, has given him success since the restart, as he won the Rocket Mortgage Classic in July. However, many doubted if that style of play could translate to Winged Foot, a course where you better be accurate off the tee. He only hit 23 fairways this week, but he showed that he was capable of muscling the ball out of the thick rough. Of the six previous winners at Winged Foot, DeChambeau hit the least amount of fairways.
21-year-old Matthew Wolff entered Sunday with a two-shot lead over Dechambeau, but the pressure of winning a major championship seemed to be too much for the young golfer. Wolff shot a final round of 75 and finished the tournament at even par, the only other player that didn’t go over the 270 par. Rounding out the top-five for the week was Louis Oosthuizen (+2), Harris English (+3), and Xander Schauffele (+4).
Already one of the most polarizing figures in the game, DeChambeau continues to become the talk of the town. Many doubted if his style of play would ever translate to being a major champion, and he proved all the naysayers wrong in dominant fashion.
Winged Foot certainly showed its teeth, but Dechambeau bit back.
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