There are three certainties in life: death, taxes and Bryson DeChambeau doing something wacky in the name of ‘progress’. Unless you were living under a rock, you’ll have heard about his off-season plans to bulk up and we’re starting to see the results. Back in October, the eccentric American told the golfing world he was “going to come back next year and look like a different person”. So far so good in that respect.
At this level, adding muscle and strength is a sure-fire way to gain speed and, with his new physique, DeChambeau has been clocking 125mph with his driver. Not content to stop there, however, he also made a tweak to his equipment ahead of last week’s Presidents Cup.
He was imparting too much spin on mishits so decided to knock down the loft on his Cobra King SpeedZone driver from 6.5 to 4.8 degrees. This apparently gets him operating in the optimal launch and spin window for his current swing.
The result is a reported gain of 15 yards and the 26-year-old had to get permission to hit his driver at the Royal Melbourne practice facility after flying balls over the net enclosure. For context, that required a 310 yard carry.
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However, this didn’t translate into a stellar on course showing. America would eventually prevail but DeChambeau’s performance left a little to be desired. After losing his opening fourball match, he was ‘rested’ by captain Woods and would not reappear until the final day’s singles. He did (somewhat) redeem himself, though, securing an important half point against Adam Hadwin.
And amidst the PR horror show that was Patrick Reed, the 26-year-old at least threw some positivity in the direction of Team USA, taking time to mingle with the loyal 1st tee fans who sang their hearts out for four days.
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Going forward, it doesn’t seem like DeChambeau has any plans to throttle back on his quest for distance and has even set his sights on World Long Drive champion Kyle Berkshire and his 150mph clubhead speed.
“How amazing would it be to rein that in?” he said. If successful, it would to be fair.
The unique attributes of Bryson’s swing, coupled with his new-found speed, means he can get away with a sub-5 degree driver but a word of warning for amateurs out there, please don’t try this at home.
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