Bryson DeChambeau’s hopes of winning The Open suffered a major blow after the American was handed a two-shot penalty following his second round at Royal Birkdale.
The two-time major champion appeared to have moved to within one shot of leader Lucas Herbert after carding a four-under-par 66, but was called aside by rules officials immediately after leaving the course to discuss a potential rules breach.
Following a lengthy review, DeChambeau was penalised for “inadvertently improving his lie” on the fifth hole, dropping him from seven under par to five under and leaving him three shots behind Herbert heading into the weekend.
The 32-year-old was investigated after television footage appeared to show him trampling long grass behind his ball in the rough before playing his shot.
After spending more than 20 minutes with officials, including R&A chief executive Mark Darbon, DeChambeau declined to discuss the ruling or confirm whether he would continue in the tournament.
DeChambeau fumes at decision
When asked by reporters, he simply replied: “Are you guys having a great night? I’m having a great night.”
He then headed to the driving range, where he greeted fans and continued practising with his team.
The incident unfolded after DeChambeau birdied the 18th to complete his round before being driven back to the fifth hole with rules officials to review the situation.
He was later found to have breached Rule 8.1, which covers actions that improve the conditions affecting a player’s stroke.
R&A rules official Grant Moir confirmed: “Bryson has been penalised two strokes for inadvertently improving the area of intended backswing on the fifth hole.”
The penalty leaves DeChambeau with significant ground to make up if he is to claim a first Open Championship title.
