Bryson DeChambeau received a two-shot penalty during the second round of the Open Championship at Royal Birkdale on Friday night for improving his lie on the fifth hole. The ruling dropped him from seven under par to five under and prompted a strong reaction from the player and his team.
The R&A assessed the penalty after reviewing footage of DeChambeau's actions in the fescue grass. Officials determined he had inadvertently improved the area for his backswing under Rule 8.1b.
R&A chief executive Mark Darbon described the decision as clear-cut. He noted the organization had a responsibility to enforce the rules consistently regardless of the player involved.
DeChambeau initially threatened to withdraw from the event. His manager Brett Falkoff told reporters that DeChambeau was considering his options and emphasized that the player was not a cheater. DeChambeau later announced on social media that he would continue playing.
Rory McIlroy criticized the reaction after his third round. He called the behavior performative and said it held up the tournament for players volunteers and staff. Marco Penge also noted the late release of Saturday tee times as a bit of a joke.
