Bryson, DeChambeau (1 U.S.OPEN)

1993

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Bryson James Aldrich DeChambeau (born September 16, 1993) is an American professional golfer. He has won seven times on the PGA Tour including one major championship, the 2020 U.S. Open. As an amateur, DeChambeau became the fifth player in history to win both the NCAA Division I championship and the U.S. Amateur in the same year.^[2] With his U.S. Open victory he became the third player to have won those three championships, after Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, and the sixth player to win both the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open.^[3]

Renowned for his analytical approach to the sport, DeChambeau has acquired the nickname of "The Scientist". His clubs are specially designed to his specifications, with thicker than normal grips and irons that are all the same length. In 2020, he became the longest driver on the PGA Tour after gaining 40 pounds in muscle.^[4][5]

In June 2015, he became the first SMU Mustang to win the NCAA individual championship, recording a score of 280 (−8) to win by one stroke.^[7] In August, he won the U.S. Amateur title, defeating Derek Bard 7 & 6 in the 36-hole final. He became the fifth player to win both the NCAA and U.S. Amateur titles in the same year, joining Jack Nicklaus (1961), Phil Mickelson (1990), Tiger Woods(1996), and Ryan Moore (2004).^[2]

DeChambeau made his PGA Tour debut as an amateur in June 2015 at the FedEx St. Jude Classic near Memphis, Tennessee, and finished in 45th place. He played in his first major championshipat the U.S. Open at Chambers Bay, but missed the cut by four strokes.^[8] DeChambeau was unable to defend his NCAA title in 2016 after the SMU athletic department was handed a postseason ban by the NCAA.^[9] He decided to forgo his senior season to play in a number of events before turning professional.^[10] At the 2015 Australian Masters in November, DeChambeau was runner-up with John Senden and Andrew Evans, two shots behind the winner Peter Senior.^[11] He was the low amateur at the Masters in 2016 and tied for 21st place.^[12]

Immediately after the Masters in mid-April 2016, DeChambeau turned professional and signed a long-term agreement with Cobra-Puma Golf.^[13] He made his pro debut days later at the RBC Heritage in South Carolina and tied for fourth, earning over $259,000.^[14][15] The decision to turn professional meant the forfeiture of his exemptions to the U.S. Open at Oakmont and Open Championship at Royal Troon but qualified his way into the U.S. Open, tied for 15th place to earn over $152,000,^[16] and improved his world ranking to 148. Despite the strong start, DeChambeau did not earn enough non-member FedEx Cup points that season to qualify for a 2017 PGA Tour card but did qualify for the Web.com Tour Finals. He was successful at earning his card through the Finals, thanks to a win at the DAP Championship.^[17][18] On July 16, 2017, DeChambeau earned his first PGA Tour victory by winning the John Deere Classic by a single stroke over Patrick Rodgers. He carded a round of 65 in the final round to win his maiden title in his 40th start on tour. The win coming the week before, gained DeChambeau a place in the 2017 Open Championship, where he missed the cut after rounds of 76–77 (+13).^[19] In 2017, DeChambeau gifted U.S. President Donald J. Trump golf clubs valued at $750.^[20]

On June 3, 2018, DeChambeau won the Memorial Tournament in Dublin, Ohio, in a sudden-death playoff against Kyle Stanley and An Byeong-hun, after the three finished regulation play tied at −15. After Stanley bogeyed the first hole of sudden death, DeChambeau proceeded to win with a birdie on the second hole, giving him his second victory on the tour.^[21] On August 26, 2018, he won The Northern Trust for his first playoff victory and, in the process, established a new record for the tournament when held at the Ridgewood Country Club – with a score of 266 – besting the old Ridgewood record of 270, which was set in 2014 by Hunter Mahan.^[22] The following week, he won at the Dell Technologies Championship played at TPC Boston in Norton, Massachusetts, with a final score of −16, two shots clear of Justin Rose. This put him over 2000 points ahead of second place player Dustin Johnson in the FedEx Cup rankings. This margin secured him top seeding at The Tour Championship, regardless of his finish at the BMW Championship. This also marked his fourth win on the tour, third for the year, and second in a FedEx Cup playoff event.^[23] At the Tour Championship, DeChambeau finished 19th out of 30 participants. As a result, he fell to 3rd in the FedEx Cup, winning $2,000,000.^[24] In September 2018, DeChambeau was named as a captain's pick by Jim Furyk for the United States team participating in the 2018 Ryder Cup. Europe defeated the U.S. team, 17½ points to 10½ points. DeChambeau went 0–3–0. He lost his singles match against Alex Norén.^[25]

On November 4, 2018, DeChambeau won the Shriners Hospitals for Children Open in Las Vegas, Nevada. The win was worth $1,260,000 in prize money.^[26] The win brought him to number five in the Official World Golf Ranking. On January 27, 2019, DeChambeau won the Omega Dubai Desert Classic in Dubai, UAE. DeChambeau claimed his maiden European Tour title by producing a closing 64 to win the tournament by seven shots.^[27] In December 2019, DeChambeau played on the U.S. team at the 2019 Presidents Cup at Royal Melbourne Golf Club in Australia. The U.S. team won 16–14. DeChambeau went 0–1–1 and halved his Sunday singles match against Adam Hadwin.^[28]

Beginning in late 2019, DeChambeau set out to add muscle mass in order to increase his swing speed and hit the ball farther. He added 20 pounds before the tour's break due to the COVID-19 pandemic and another 20 during the break. When the tour resumed, he quickly moved to the lead in driving distance.^[29] On July 5, 2020, DeChambeau won the Rocket Mortgage Classic in Detroit, Michigan, by three strokes over Matthew Wolff. In the final round, DeChambeau shot a 7-under 65 at Detroit Golf Club, birdieing four of the first seven holes and closing with three consecutive birdies. He finished at a career-best 23-under 265. DeChambeau came into the week with six straight top-eight finishes and was the only player with top-10s in the first three events after the restart from the coronavirus.^[30]

In August 2020, DeChambeau briefly held a share of the lead during the final round of the PGA Championship; he went on to finish in a tie for fourth place, his first top-10 finish in a major championship. Six weeks later, at the 120th U.S. Open at Winged Foot, he came from two strokes behind at the start of the final round to win his first major championship. His six-under par total gave him a six stroke victory over Matthew Wolff. He was the only player under par in the final round, with a three-under par 67 and the only player to finish under par for the tournament.^[31] With the win, he became the third player in history, after Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods, to win the NCAA Individual Championship, the U.S. Amateur and the U.S. Open during a career. The win moved him to number five in the Official World Golf Ranking, matching his previous best, which he had first achieved in November 2018. ^[32]

All of DeChambeau's irons and wedges are cut to exactly the same length: 37.5 inches (95.3 cm).^[33] Their lie and bounce angles are also the same; only the lofts are different. In addition to the single-length concept, his clubs are unusual for their extremely upright lie angle.^[34] He also uses custom-made carbon graphite shafts on all of his clubs, including his putter. He is a first to do so among PGA Tour players.^[35] DeChambeau keeps the club on the same plane throughout his swing and does not turn his wrists during his swing.^[36] In 2011, at the suggestion of his instructor Mike Schy, DeChambeau switched to JumboMax Grips, the largest grips commercially available, which allow him to hold the club in his palms rather than his fingers.^[37]