Bryson DeChambeau Is Learning to Links. Will It Pay Off?

The mad scientist is working hard this week to put the great puzzle together of figuring out what he’s unapologetically called the hardest major for him to win-the Open Championship-at Royal Portrush starting today.

So what types of lengths are team Bryson going to in order to uncover every single legitimate stone in this pursuit? According to the superstar, this all comes down to two factors: How he hits the ball in windy conditions and how he putts on slower greens we commonly see in the Open Championship. Portrush provides that kind of speed as you would expect.

But DeChambeau and caddie Greg Bodine have a plan for these slower greens, especially as the wind rolls in for much of this championship.

“For every ten feet of a putt when it gets really windy out here, we are figuring the ball will stop an inch shorter,” DeChambeau’s caddie Greg Bodine said. “Putting has been always tricky for me, so learning how to putt on (links) types of greens is really important,” DeChambeau adds.

The second factor that DeChambeau says he needs to take command of with Open Championship golf is his ability to hit piercing shots that don’t get too affected by the wind. “I'm hitting it just as far as the past right now, which is awesome," he says. "Part of the problem, though, for me right now is just the curvature because I hit so far. The ball is like fluttering in the wind a bit, so I'm trying to stabilize the ball a little bit more."

“We're working on [stabilization], and it's a good challenge. I'm excited for that challenge, but my game is just as good as what it was. If not, I would say better, arguably better than a few years ago,” DeChambeau said. "Winning a major [in 2024] helps, but feeling like I'm playing consistent, competing, contending in the majors is what I'm keen on doing and continuing to do.”

Back to the main plot here, The Open Championship is far and away the most challenging of the majors for DeChambeau to spread his wings in and the 31-year-old

“Yeah, the style of golf is just difficult. It's not something I'm used to. I never grew up in it. And I'm getting comfortable with it. Even this past year (2024), I learned a lot. I learned a lot about my game and I'll continue to get better over the course of time.”

DeChambeau who shot 9-over that week at Troon to miss the cut by three shots, says it’s a critical getting from point A to point B in links golf and trying to distill what matters to him in his improvement. "If I can get those two things down, then I give myself a good chance,” he says.

So, does he have to think more than normal as he enters a shot on links courses like Royal Portrush?

“Absolutely. You're feeling the wind, how much it's coming into you and if it's off the left or right a lot more than normal. Okay, how do I feel? How do I turn this into the wind?” he said in Tuesday’s presser. “If you're going to try to ride the wind one time, how do I control and make sure it doesn't go into a crazy place? Because once the ball goes into that wind, it's sayonara. That thing can go forever offline. It will turn east sometimes. But just having fun out here is what I'm trying to accomplish this week and being pretty strategic.”