Bryson DeChambeau bounces back from Nick Faldo after a hot start to the Open
Bryson DeChambeau kept a low profile coming into this week’s 2026 Open Championship at Royal Birkdale. He still has the media, however, thanks to six-time major winner Nick Faldo.
Negative press, that is. Faldo criticized DeChambeau during a podcast interview, specifically for Bryson’s lack of technique when playing links golf.
On Thursday in a baked Birkdale, DeChambeau made a show to enter contention early. After his round, the two-time US Open winner slyly retaliated against Faldo, using the words of an opposing TV commentator.
Bryson DeChambeau makes an Open charge after being criticized by Nick Faldo
Heading into this week’s Open, DeChambeau had played three majors in 2026… and missed three times. When Faldo was asked about Bryson’s biggest struggles on the Sky Sports Golf Podcast this week, he called it “The Rough Slam.”
When the topic of DeChambeau’s chances at the Open came up, Faldo didn’t hold back in his criticism.
“He’s got that — I can tell from his face — he has absolutely no strategy,” Faldo told host Jamie Weir. “I mean, he said it last year and I thought on TV, ‘I’m going to go out and attack the links.’ Well, I never attacked the links. He’s teasing you, isn’t he? You have served it well, it is very important.”
He didn’t stop there.
“You don’t think, ‘I’m going to bomb it down there, I can’t see where I’m going, it’s 20 meters wide.’ Oh yes, good luck. You have to think, ‘How do I find it in the short grass?’ It is very important,” continued Faldo. “He’ll get up and continue bombing … but you can’t be completely blocked in the links.”
The fact that DeChambeau finished T10 in last year’s Open at Royal Portrush made Faldo’s comments curious at the time. DeChambeau’s performance on Thursday made them look even worse.
Walking the morning alongside Scottie Scheffler and Tyrrell Hatton, Bryson opened with back-to-back birdies. He kept it together all day, making three more birdies against two bogeys to finish with a 67.
A hot start left DeChambeau three shots behind and two out of the lead.
DeChambeau jabs Faldo: ‘I think my strategy was good today’
DeChambeau skipped the traditional press conference after his round, and instead agreed to a quick interview with the R&A with no other reporters present.
“It was a tough fight out there. The atmosphere was changing a little bit. It was nice to see a lot of fans coming to us, and they were all fighting for us. It was nice to see the ups and downs of the team, but we all played very well. It was very nice,” he began. “There are some driving holes that I have to work on. Other than that, I played really well. I made some good putts. I three-putted once, but that’s life.”
Then when the interviewer asked about the lessons learned from the first round, DeChambeau took it easy when he criticized Faldo for his lack of “strategy”.
“I think you should be more strategies out on the golf course. I feel like I did a great job today of being awesome strategies and we’re very focused on putting in the right places,” DeChambeau said in reference to Faldo’s comments.
He added another “trick” for good measure.
“Apart from the age of 18, I put the ball in good places, but I need to hit more balls. strategy it was fun today.”
In addition to his light Faldo ribbing, Bryson also offered an interesting comment about playing alongside Scheffler, a rare occurrence when DeChambeau plays at LIV Golf.
“It was fun playing with Scottie, seeing how well he hits the ball. That’s something – I’ve wanted to play with him for a while now. Seeing how he hit the ball today was great,” DeChambeau said of Scheffler. “It makes me think, oh, man, I’ve got to work on my driveand the 3-wood a little bit better because I hit it farther than him, but sometimes it doesn’t go straight.”
He said playing with World No. 1 is a “good gauge” in his game.
“It tells me where my game is. And it shows me where it’s at. It’s good to see firsthand,” DeChambeau said. You always see it on TV, but it’s just a little different sometimes when you’re there.”
As for the rest of the week, DeChambeau said he hopes he can keep the good times going until Sunday.
“I’m very happy. If I can go on and give the crowd something to enjoy on Sunday, that’s all I can ask for.”
