Watch Bryson DeChambeau take hilarious dig at Sir Nick Faldo after R1 of The Open
Bryson DeChambeau emphasised how strategic he was during the opening round of the final men's major of the year at Royal Birkdale.
Bryson DeChambeau decided to take a not-so-subtle dig at Sir Nick Faldo after making an excellent start to The Open.
DeChambeau was among the early starters on day one of the final men's major of the year at Royal Birkdale.
He battled his way to an opening three-under 67 which, at the time, was only one stroke off the early lead set by England's Dan Brown and South Korea's Sungjae Im.
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There is absolutely no doubt that DeChambeau will be fired up with the start as he came into the 2026 Open having missed cuts at The Masters, US PGA Championship and the U.S. Open.
The performances attracted criticism from six-time major winner Faldo on the eve of The Open, with the 68-year-old Englishman claiming DeChambeau had "zero clue" about strategy.
"I'd say it to his face," said Faldo.
DeChambeau declined to speak to the print or television media after his opening round on Thursday but he did offer a few words to an R&A official whereby he emphasised just how strategic he was around the Southport links.
"I think you've got to be a lot more strategic out on the golf course," he said.
"I feel like I did a really good job today of being incredibly strategic and focused super hard on placing it in the right places.
"Besides 18, I placed the ball in some good areas. I just need to hit more fairways.
"Other than that, I feel like my strategy was nice today."
He added: "It was a hard fought battle out there. The wind was switching quite a bit.
"It was fun seeing the fans going at us, and they were rooting for all of us.
"It was fun just seeing the ups and downs of the group, but we all played pretty well. It was a lot of fun.
"There's some driving holes out there I've got to work on.
"Other than that, I played really well. Made some good putts and three-putted once, but that's life."
DeChambeau was reunited with his Ryder Cup teammate Scottie Scheffler.
The world number one and reigning Open champion carded a two-under 68.
It could have been better for the 30-year-old, who played the first six holes in four-under.
But he couldn't get anything going on the back nine and also believed he was hard done by at the 17th hole.
He thought a spectator accidentally stood on his golf ball after hitting his tee shot into the fescue but, according to Scheffler, "nobody fessed up".
DeChambeau said of Scheffler: "It was fun playing with Scottie, seeing how good he strikes the ball.
"I've wanted to play with him for a while now. Seeing how he struck the ball today was beautiful.
"Makes me think, oh, man, I've got to work on my driving and 3-wood a little bit better because I hit it farther than him, but it sometimes doesn't go straight."
DeChambeau said playing alongside the top-ranked player was a good gauge to see where his game is at.
"It's good to see it in person," he said.
"You always see it on TV, but it's just a little different sometimes when you're right there.
"That's why it's cool for people to be out here and see what Scottie and myself and Tyrrell [Hatton] can do, and everybody out here.
"It's a great bunch of guys, and it was fun to play today."
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