Bryson DeChambeau’s latest missed cut in a major championship is so surprising because of how well the LIV Golf star drove the golf ball over the first two rounds of the US Open.
DeChambeau is going to have to do plenty of soul-searching over the coming weeks, with LIV Golf’s next event not taking place until after The Open Championship.
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The 32-year-old has missed the first three cuts of the year in the majors. He was five over par when his second round concluded at Shinnecock Hills on Friday evening.
DeChambeau had made a fast start on Thursday in New York. However, some familiar problems emerged for the two-time US Open champion.
Bryson DeChambeau’s US Open performance assessed after another missed cut
His approach play was particularly poor this week. It is no secret that DeChambeau tends to struggle when he has to contend with uneven lies and heavy winds.
But there was one positive sign for DeChambeau. He gained more than 1.7 shots off the tee in both rounds, according to Data Golf, with the high point coming when he hit a 427-yard drive on Thursday.
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And speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, Ryan Lavner admitted that it was almost more alarming to see DeChambeau drive the ball so well and still miss the cut.
Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images
“It’s amazing because this was one of his best driving performances of the year. He had a new TaylorMade driver in play, found a bunch of fairways, really had himself in great scoring positions and was unable to capitalise whatsoever,” he said.
“He really struggled with the speed of the greens as well. I would like to dismiss him just because of what we know of Bryson DeChambeau, where he is at the moment, but last year, he popped up at The Open Championship, actually had a pretty good appearance at Portrush and seemed to indicate that he had figured out, a little bit, maybe not quite Phil Mickelson at Muirfield, but had figured a little bit how to perform his best on links golf.
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“You talk about folding in what was a monumental year for Bryson DeChambeau, with all the leverage that he held, incredibly disappointing performance in the major championships.”
How Bryson DeChambeau has performed off the tee this season
DeChambeau is known for being one of the most explosive drivers of the golf ball in the game. And it seemed ominous for the rest of the field just how well he was hitting the driver at Shinnecock.
However, he has actually only gained more than one shot per round off the tee in two events this season, according to Data Golf. South Africa was, by some distance, his best performance yet, while he also did particularly well in Riyadh.
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But the US Open saw his best display so far this season off the tee.
That should bode well for what is to come for DeChambeau. However, he is unlikely to play in another event before the final major of the year.
And being the best driver of the golf ball is unlikely to guarantee any success around Royal Birkdale next month.
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