One of the most significant differences between the LIV Golf League and the PGA Tour is that LIV is a track meet, a sprint versus a run.
You can’t have a bad round in a LIV event because players behind you will chase you down; such is the mentality of playing on LIV.
It’s very similar to the Champions Tour, which is also considered a 54-hole sprint where a bad round is a death knell.
Bryson DeChambeau, a two-time U.S. Open winner, has experienced the sprint mentality by others recently and has not shown to be a “Bell Lap” player.
The bell lap is the final lap in a race, and if you struggle in it, winning becomes almost impossible.
The week before the Masters, DeChambeau looked to be in a good position to win LIV Miami with the long-hitting DeChambeau leading by two shots over Spainard Sergio Garcia going into the Bell Lap.
Posting a final round 3-over 75, DeChambeau finished fifth, four shots behind winner Australian Marc Leishman.
The following week at the Masters, DeChambeau was in the final group on Sunday, two shots behind Ulsterman Rory McIlroy.
DeChambeau made up the two shots in the first two holes and was tied for the lead after a birdie on the second hole.
That was the high point for DeChambeau as he fell like a stone over the last 16 holes, finishing T5 after shooting a 3-over par 75.
On Sunday in Mexico, DeChambeau started the round with a one-shot lead over Australian and Open Champion Cam Smith, but what is now becoming a pattern and not an exception, the long hitter found his putter misbehaving. Then, in a critical situation, a foot slip, a lost ball off the tee, and DeChambeau had nothing in the tank to catch Joaquin Niemann, the eventual winner.
DeChambeau didn’t talk after his final rounds in Miami or Mexico City, but did provide some insight after his Masters Sunday.
“Just more of the same with my irons,” DeChambeau said. “Was trying to figure it out from last Sunday. For some reason, I’m just not fully optimized. I get over it, and I feel like I’m going to hit the heel, and I try to pull across it, and it just goes left on me. If I just had somewhat of good iron play this week, it would have been a lot different outcome. But could have, should have, would have. You’ve got to do it out here.”
Equipment for DeChambeau has always been an issue with the clubhead speed he generates, and while new irons are on their way, they were not in his bag in Mexico City.
While the equipment may be a problem, it doesn’t explain why the earlier rounds in all three events, good scoring put him in contention, but that same equipment faltered on Sunday.
It’s not a choke issue; chokers don’t win two U.S. Opens and contend in multiple majors as DeChambeau did last year.
Only DeChambeau can explain what the issue is, but one thing is clear: He is not currently a Bell Lap player.
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