Padraig Harrington has pinpointed why a change in attitude from Bryson DeChambeau may have torpedoed his Green Jacket hopes at The Masters on Sunday.
The three-time major winner also revealed why DeChambeau’s post-round admission about not talking to Rory McIlroy was ‘bizarre’.
On Sunday afternoon, McIlroy finally ended his long and agonising wait to win the Green Jacket and etch his name alongside Tiger Woods, Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player, Ben Hogan and Gene Sarazen as only the sixth player to have won the Career Grand Slam.
He came up against the man who had caused him great pain at Pinehurst last year in DeChambeau, after the American superstar – who has grown to becoming one of the most beloved figures in golf of late – pipped McIlroy to win the US Open.
The long driver had played brilliantly around Augusta all week and both players arrived at the tee box on the first focused purely on winning the green jacket.
But interestingly after carding a 75 to finish T5 on the leaderboard, DeChambeau claimed McIlroy had not spoken to him throughout their round.
Bryson DeChambeau (left) played the final round of the Masters alongside Rory McIlroy (right)
The American (back) said that McIlroy (front) did not talk to him throughout the round
DeChambeau admitted he had ‘no idea’ about McIlroy’s mood after the triumphant victory
When pressed on whether the Northern Irishman had given him any insight into his game on Sunday, the two-time major winner said: ‘No idea. [McIlroy] Didn’t talk to me once all day,’ the 31-year-old said when asked how McIlroy was feeling following his victory.
‘He wouldn’t talk to me,’ he repeated.
McIlroy cut a focused, methodical figure throughout his week at Augusta showing only fleeting glimpses of emotion – barring obviously his outpouring on the 18th – and very much stayed well within his ‘bubble’ as he weathered the pressure, emotions and expectations that have followed him for so long around Augusta National.
‘He [McIlroy] was just being focused, I guess. It’s not me, though,’ DeChambeau added. He added that he had wanted to ‘cry’ for the Northern Irishman after he put his ball in the water on 13.
His claims have been questioned by some online. Some posted footage of the pair greeting on the first tee before wishing each other good luck. Sports podcaster Adam Hoge also claims to have seen them talking ‘multiple times’ on the greens ‘about their ball markers’.
Harrington, though, has now addressed DeChambeau’s comments and was left scratching his head.
A legend of the game, the Irishman claimed that plenty of players don’t like to talk during their rounds.
‘Bryson seems to be a little bit upset that Rory didn’t talk to him on the golf course which is bizarre because plenty of times your playing partner wouldn’t say a word to you,’ Harrington told RTE Radio’s 1 Today with Claire Byrne.
But Padraig Harrington has claimed DeChambeau’s comments were ‘bizarre’ claiming that many players don’t like to talk during their round
Harrington also questioned the LIV Golfer’s strategy out on the golf course, questioning why he teed off with an iron on the par four third hole
DeChambeau’s round later unravelled around Amen Corner, making a double bogey on 11 and a bogey on 12
McIlroy’s alleged snub of DeChambeau during the final round has been questioned online
‘It’s not an unusual thing, to expect your playing partner to help you out by talking to you (is unusual).’
As for many who have plodded around this illustrious golf course, Amen Corner wreaked havoc for both players on Sunday. McIlroy made a double bogey on 13, while DeChambeau similarly carded a double on the 11th after finding the water. He would then bogey the 12, leaving his par putt short on the par 13. Interestingly, he had bogeyed the iconic hole twice during the week on Friday and Saturday.
It came after he had previously made back-to-back bogeys on the third and fourth holes having taken a one-shot lead on McIlroy with a birdie on No 2.
And this is where Harrington believes he showed a side to himself that was uncharacteristic of golf’s biggest hitter, with the three-time major champion questioning his strategy.
‘What was he thinking on the third hole?’ Harrington said.
‘Bryson has made his game by being a long hitter. He stands up on the third hole with a one-shot lead and possibly can drive the green, he lays up, makes bogey; Rory drives it, hits driver up to the near the edge of the green and makes his birdie.’
While McIlroy took a driver, DeChambeau bizarrely selected an iron on the 350-yard par four and drove his shot 243 yards down the middle of the hole.
‘It was the most bizarre change of personality I’ve ever seen in the game of golf right there in that moment…it was beyond bizarre what he did off the tee, for him in his personality. He didn’t hit a shot afterwards,’ Harrington.
DeChambeau had admitted after his round that he had been struggling with his irons notably having hit more balls on the range than most other players
‘He has different skills but his ego has gone down this road of being a long hitter and he had a chance right there on the third hole, stand up there, burst one down there, it’s a big enough area and he just gave all the momentum back to Rory.
‘It was just a change of attitude by him. Not being yourself can be a very dangerous thing in golf.’
DeChambeau was the tournament’s biggest driver cumulatively, averaging 330 yards on his strokes, beating McIlroy by seven feet.
Perhaps, though, the decision to take an iron was down to his lack of accuracy with the big stick, with the American notably hooking his drive on the first into the patrons under the trees on the left.
He’d also finish T15 for accuracy, landing 44 of his 56 tee shots this weekend at an average of 78 per cent.
DeChambeau, though, admitted that he didn’t feel fully optimised this week with his iron play, having notably hit nearly 400 balls on the practice range on Thursday.
‘Just more of the same with my irons. Was trying to figure it out from last Sunday,’ he said. ‘For some reason, I’m just not fully optimized. I get over it and I feel like I’m going to hit the heel and I try to pull across it and it just goes left on me.
‘If I just had somewhat of good iron play this week, it would have been a lot different outcome. But could have, should have, would haves. You’ve got to do it out here, and it’s going to be a fun playoff to watch.
‘But I take a lot of good from this week. I’m excited for the rest of my life.’
Interestingly, DeChambeau hasn’t stuck around at Augusta and has returned to Pinehurst, the site of his US Open win last year, for this week’s ACC Championships.
