Bryson DeChambeau opens up on injuries, Saudi league and ‘being beat down’

Yes, Bryson DeChambeau’s happy to be back, and yes, he’s happy that he’s surgically repaired left just fine, and yes, he’s just kinda happy overall.

But 76s are still a drag.

“I mean, from a golf perspective, no, I hated every minute of it,” he said.

“But from an emotional standpoint, it was nice to finally be back in a competitive environment.”

One four-over par round, shot during Thursday’s first round of the Memorial; two ways to look at it. The 76 isn’t great. But it was a long time coming. If he’s been honest, golf’s longest hitter hasn’t been the year-opening Tournament of Champions, and it’s been injuries, surgery, rumors and time off ever since.

First, the injuries. A week after the TOC, he withdrew from the Sony Open with a left wrist ailment. Two weeks later, at the Farmers Insurance, he was seen rubbing both the wrist and his lower back, at one point shouting, “I can’t play golf today.” The week after that, he pulled out of the Saudi International, left hand citing and hip injuries. From there, he benched himself for seven weeks, returned to the WGC-Match Play, failed to win at the Texas Open and Masters in the Texas Open and Masters after Augusta.

The questions followed. Had the player injured himself done so? He said he hadn’t; soon after the Saudi, DeChambeau said he injured himself while playing ping-pong, and the spill re-aggravated previous injuries. Then the Saudi-funded LIV Golf series, which begins play next week. He said he wouldn’t be; in late February, DeChambeau committed to the PGA Tour, and he did so again on Thursday.

“Me, there’s obviously a lot of conversation,” DeChambeau said. “For me, I personally don’t think that at a career where I can risk things like that.

“I’m loyal to my family that I’ve created around with sponsors and everything. And as of right now, the golf world is probably going to change in some capacity. I don’t know what that is. Not my job to do so. I’m just going to play professional golf and enjoy it wherever it takes me, play with the best players in the world. ”

Have the past four months been frustrating? Undoubtedly. He missed a title defense at the Arnold Palmer. He missed the Players Championship and the PGA Championship, though he did practice for the latter. But about that time off along the way. When you’ve played since the Masters in April, and in the words above, a golf perspective and an emotional standpoint.

When a reporter asked him how he felt his first tee shot on Thursday, DeChambeau opened up some.

“My time off, I’ve been able to hit golf balls. It’s very difficult. You’re in your head the whole time, ”he said. “You have this thought process, and you are out there and it’s OK, but it doesn’t when you want to.

“So really having a positive attitude is even important for me. Now, I’ve learned that that’s what really matters for me. I enjoy the journey again. I’ve taken enough time because it’s like, man, I was grinding so hard and I wasn’t figuring stuff out. It can just beat you down.

“But taking a little bit of time off, unscheduled, it was always good for my mental health and being able to look back and appreciate the grind and journey I’ve always enjoyed going through.

“But I was excited to get out there and play golf again and compete. And a bit frustrating, obviously, not playing the way you want, but it’s a bit of a warm-up for me. I played golf in a while. First 18 holes that have been completed without any pain and any thought of the hand in seven months. It’s a long process for me, but I’m excited to see where this takes me. I’m pretty stoked. I know I’ll have a lot of work ahead of me, but I’m not afraid of it. ”

Could that change as soon as Friday? For sure. The hand is no given either; The US Open is open in two weeks.

Then again, it’s not like saying something crazy low … like a 75.

“I know I have a lot of stuff to work on,” he said. “Just be able to go out there, start enjoying this game has given me. It’s great seeing the fans out there, supporting me, pushing me on, even when I’m not doing great. Gives me some comfort that it’s fun – it’s fun again. ”

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Nick Piastowski

Golf.com Editor

Nick Piastowski is Senior Editor at Golf.com and Golf Magazine. In his role, he is responsible for editing, writing and developing stories across the golf space. And when he’s not writing about ways to hit the golf ball farther and straighter, the Milwaukee native probably plays the game, hitting the ball left, right and short, and drinking a cold beer to wash away his score. You can reach out to any of these topics – his stories, his game or his beers – at nick.piastowski@golf.com.