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Bryson DeChambeau took a step toward breaking his major slump with a 67 on Thursday at Royal Birkdale, a bogey on the last hole dropping him out of a tie for first place. But after the round, the talk around DeChambeau was that DeChambeau wasn’t talking.
Despite being in contention, DeChambeau told the R&A that he was declining to speak to TV or print media. He did answer a few questions from an R&A official about his round.
That has been a recurring theme for DeChambeau in 2026, as Thursday marked the fifth straight major championship round in which he declined to talk to the media afterwards. This is also not the first time DeChambeau has done this with the media. In the summer of 2021—a period in which he was playing the PGA Tour but in the midst of a feud with Brooks Koepka, had made controversial remarks regarding vaccination and was critical of his then-equipment sponsor Cobra for their driver—DeChambeau started passing on media requests.
DeChambeau’s media blackout comes amid uncertainty regarding his future. The Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund has pulled its financial backing from LIV Golf after spending more than $5 billion on the soft-power exercise. DeChambeau has teamed with current LIV leadership in hopes of finding a new buyer, although it’s unclear if anyone is willing to underwrite the league given its financial losses and struggles to gain traction with the American golf populace.
DeChambeau’s contract with LIV is also up after the year, making him a free agent. Golf Digest has reported that representatives for several LIV players have already begun reaching out about coming back, while The Athletic separately confirmed that DeChambeau’s representatives spoke to the tour while exploring his post-2026 options. DeChambeau initially denied the report, but days later admitted to ESPN that his side had, in fact, talked. However, DeChambeau’s potential reinstatement terms would likely be harsher than those given to Brooks Koepka or Patrick Reed. DeChambeau was one of the original 11 plaintiffs in the August 2022 antitrust complaint, and he was the last to remove himself from it.
There is the chance that DeChambeau may lean into his YouTube channel and become a social media golfer, something he has signalled is on the table. In the last few months, he’s used his YouTube channel as a platform to talk about his game.
DeChambeau has missed the cut in the three prior major starts before the Open. He’s currently T-3 as the afternoon waves go off at Royal Birkdale.
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Main Image: Adrian Dennis
