Fans slammed Bryson DeChambeau after the American received relief during the first round of the 2024 US Open. The LIV golfer had a terrible shot on Thursday, June 13, at the Major, while playing on the par-5 fifth hole.
He shot the ball into the trees near the fences, and when he arrived to take another shot, he earned relief from officials due to a tower obstruction between the ball and the hole. According to Rule F-23, if any temporary immovable object hinders a golfer's shot, they can receive relief. DeChambeau was fortunate as the rule helped him, and he made a birdie on the hole.
Flushing It shared the news about Bryson DeChambeau's shot on its X (formerly Twitter) account with the caption saying:
"Bryson DeChambeau just got a drop from the 6 inch wide TV tower which gave him a clear shot, he then hit the green from 244. Use the rules to your advantage."
However, fans called it a foul and dubbed him a "cheater" in the comments section of the post.
"We call it cheating," commented another fan.
"That’s ridiculous. Hit a shot. If it hits the tower, drop another and try again. No penalty," wrote a fan.
Meanwhile, some fans supported the golfer and blamed the authorities for installing ShotLink towers in between.
"It’s ridiculous, but as long as it’s there for them to exploit I can’t blame the players. Ruling bodies need to fix this," wrote another fan.
Another fan mentioned that if these towers weren't there, the public would complain about poor coverage of the event, thus requesting everyone to focus on the Major.
"But then if the tv tower isn’t there the coverage is worse and people will whine about that , just enjoy the best players in the world playing an extremely difficult course and shut up," commented a fan.
Here are more fans reactions:
"Sometimes rules go with you and sometimes against you," commented another fan.
"Legalised cheating. No way was his actual line impeded," jotted a fan.
"Pathetic," yet someone commented.
A quick recap of Bryson DeChambeau's performance at 2024 US Open
In the first round of the 2024 US Open, Bryson DeChambeau displayed a fabulous performance despite playing on a tough golf course. He teed off on the tenth hole and carded two birdies on the first nine holes of his opening round.
On the back nine, he carded a birdie on the third and then on the fifth. He made only a single bogey on Thursday and settled for a score of 3-under 67. DeChambeau tied for fourth place with 2024 Farmers Insurance Open winner Matthieu Pavon.
The opening round of the US Open was pretty amazing, filled with surprises and shocks. Rory McIlroy took the lead, tied with Patrick Cantlay, with a score of 5-under, while Scottie Scheffler had a rough start and shot an over-par round.