The golfing world is buzzing with excitement as the season-ending event in Jeddah draws near. At the center of this attention stands Bryson DeChambeau, the renowned skipper of the Crushers GC. All eyes will be on him as he seeks to replicate his triumphant performance at the previous tournament in Chicago, a feat that has even left Talor Gooch envious.
In Chicago, DeChambeau led his team to the top of the leaderboard with a remarkable performance. Scoring a total of 13 under 200 to claim the trophy, he secured his second win of the season and catapulted himself to the 3rd spot in the 2023 standings. When asked about the secret behind his success, DeChambeau revealed a straightforward but potent factor.
During an interview with the current top 3 players in the LIV Golf standings in anticipation of the Jeddah tournament, the 30-year-old golfer shared the reason behind his leap from the 38th position to the 3rd. He credited his newfound driver, describing it as the element that “luckily” elevated his game and “changed the mindset” for him.
Continuing his explanation, DeChambeau recalled a particular moment in Andalucia when he was “still hitting the driver pretty far off line” despite his overall good performance. He vividly recounted a duck-hook he hit at No. 11 “three times off the tee” and emphasized that such errors shouldn’t occur if one aims to win a golf tournament. However, luck was on his side, as he managed to find the first ball, much to Gooch’s surprise.
As DeChambeau looks forward to utilizing his new driver to secure further victories and potentially become the individual champion in Jeddah, he faces some uncertainty due to recent developments related to the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR).
The OWGR recently made a ruling that golfers participating in the Saudi-backed league would not receive points, citing differences in the format of the PIF-funded league compared to the traditional 72-hole format used by other tours. Peter Dawson, the OWGR chairman, pointed out that LIV Golfers cannot be ranked “equitably” with other players.
While DeChambeau wasn’t entirely surprised by this decision, he expressed concern about how it might affect the participation of many golfers in major tournaments and the Ryder Cup, where OWGR points play a significant role. To address this issue, he proposed a solution to allocate spots to the top 12 golfers based on their season performance rather than excluding them entirely.
