This Open Championship has it all. Not even controversy is missing. En este caso, el protagonista es Bryson DeChambeau, penalised by the officials with two penalty strokes for improving his ‘stance’ before playing his second shot at the 5th hole
DeChambeau had finished his second round in the tournament in brilliant fashion. He carded two birdies at holes 17 and 18 for a 66 and a total of seven under par. He moved into sole second, one stroke behind the leader, Australian Lucas Herbert (-8). Or so he thought…
Seconds after leaving the 18th green grinning from ear to ear, giving little fist bumps and greetings to the staff, reality hit him. The smile faded
The officials told him there was a problem. Houston, Houston. They took him away in a buggy, before he signed his card, to the right side of the 5th green, a short par-4 at Royal Birkdale where players typically play a one-iron
In fact, the controversy had started much earlier and, as often happens these days, on social media. The matter at the 5th hole, as you’d expect, occurred well before the round finished, but the officials only told him there was a problem at the end, just after finishing
The point is that several users uploaded images to social media of DeChambeau preparing his second shot at the 5th hole, where it can be clearly seen that he carelessly stepped on the tall grass surrounding the position of his ball
Did Bryson Dechambeau improve his lie here?
Watch the surrounding grass area behind the ball and his set up routine. Posting the full, unedited sequence so golf fans and officials can judge it themselves. @NUCLRGOLF @TheOpen @GolfChannel @NoLayingUp @brysondech #open pic.twitter.com/al2eT01tp8
— Mr. Feeny (@MrFeeny7) July 17, 2026
With these images and social media ablaze, the officials decided to fully investigate the situation, dealt with the action with Bryson at the scene and ultimately determined that he deserved two penalty strokes for improving his ‘stance’. Basically, DeChambeau, as can be clearly seen in the video, showed very little care when approaching and stepping away from the ball while preparing the shot, noticeably flattening the tall grass around him, especially the grass directly affecting his backswing
Basically, the Open had no choice but to penalise him with the two penalty strokes, although in the statement they placed special emphasis on absolving Bryson of responsibility. They made it very clear that the improvement of his ‘stance’ was accidental and never deliberate
DeChambeau, who refused to speak to the media, something he has been repeating recently, did not at all agree with the officials’ decision. So much so that a direct threat was clearly read on his lips: “If you penalise me, I’m not playing tomorrow”.
Sure looks like Bryson DeChambeau just said he’s “not playing tomorrow”
🤯🤯🤯 pic.twitter.com/TAm7Uxkvcv
— Christopher Powers (@CPowers14) July 17, 2026
DeChambeau’s reaction was a heat-of-the-moment one. No one doubts he will go out to play on Saturday. In fact, as soon as the two-stroke penalty was confirmed and he dropped to -5 on the leaderboard, Bryson went to the driving range to hit balls. As a result, DeChambeau fell from sole second to a tie for fifth with Si Woo Kim and Sam Burns
We will have to see how the American reacts to this situation. We’ll see whether it affects him negatively or, on the contrary, gives him extra fuel and motivation to get the best out of himself over the next two days
DeChambeau left Royal Birkdale after half past ten following his practice session without confirming whether he would play tomorrow, without making any comments, and gifting the range security guard a signed glove as thanks for the extra time
This is the Open’s official statement:
Grant Moir, Executive Director of Governance at the R&A
Bryson has been penalised with two strokes for accidentally improving the area of his intended swing, specifically the backswing area, at the 5th hole, when he was about to play his second shot
I will explain the technical aspects of the rule. The Rule 8.1 limits what a player may do to improve any of the protected conditions that affect the stroke, and among them is the area of the swing the player intends to make. An improvement is considered to exist when one or more of the conditions affecting the stroke are altered in such a way that the player obtains a potential advantage in executing it
I want to stress that this applies even when the action is accidental, as occurred in Bryson’s case
The area of the intended swing comprises the whole area that could reasonably affect any part of the backswing, the downswing or the follow-through of the swing for the stroke to be played
The important point in this case is that, among the prohibited actions, the player may not move, bend or break any natural object that is growing or fixed
A player may place themselves correctly by taking reasonable steps to get to the ball and assume the stance, although in certain circumstances that may improve some of the conditions affecting the stroke. However, in doing so they must choose the least intrusive action possible to resolve that specific situation. The player does not have the right to necessarily have a normal stance or swing
I want to reiterate that this rule applies even when there is no intention to improve the area, as occurred in Bryson’s case
That is all I have to say
