Had the final day of The Masters truly been between Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau for the green jacket, Sunday at Augusta National would have certainly been an anticlimax for fans.
Of course, to say the final day of The Masters was a treat for fans would be an understatement. Rory McIlroy finally won the green jacket after a stunning turn of events in which he needed to beat Justin Rose in a playoff.
McIlroy seemed to lose it and win it several times over the course of the day. The likes of Rose, Ludvig Aberg and Patrick Reed all had golden opportunities to deny the Northern Irishman the career grand slam.
But oddly, Bryson DeChambeau was barely a factor.
Bryson DeChambeau criticised after his actions after the final round at The Masters
DeChambeau had spoken of his pairing with McIlroy being a ‘match’ ahead of the final day. But by the early stages of the second nine, the LIV Golf star was out of contention. He was four over par for the day walking off the 12th tee.
DeChambeau seemed to be upset that McIlroy did not speak to him all day during the final round. But it seems that it is the 31-year-old coming into criticism.
Speaking on Dan on Golf, Alan Shipnuck suggested it was really poor from DeChambeau to complain while McIlroy was celebrating perhaps the most satisfying major victory golf has seen for some time.
He said: “I loved that from Rory. You talked about the mind games. If Bryson wants to play his, then Rory will reciprocate. I thought it was really weak of Bryson to bring that up. This is the greatest moment of Rory’s golfing life, and Bryson made it all about him and his little tender feelings. Who cares if he talked to you? This was Masters Sunday, and Rory had already said he was going to go in his little cocoon, his little bubble, what was Bryson expecting? Small talk?
“Bryson wants to be loved the way Rory is loved. But it’s effortless with Rory because he’s so genuine, he’s so sincere, he’s open, he’s engaging. There’s a humanity, a sweetness there. And Bryson is always trying so hard, and another little moment where Bryson would have been a lot better just to keep his mouth shut. I know there was a lot of eye-rolling about that, it’s like man, you got beat, you played bad. Horrible. Don’t try and make this about you, being some affront to your dignity because Rory didn’t make small talk for you.”
The prediction DeChambeau made after beating Rory McIlroy at the US Open
While so many of the details of the US Open last year remain so vivid, it is easy to initially forget that McIlroy and DeChambeau were not in the same group for the final round at Pinehurst.
But it felt like a duel, with DeChambeau coming out on top to secure his second US Open title.
Interestingly, DeChambeau made a prediction about McIlroy that day as he was asked about ending his own major drought.
“I’m sure it will fuel Rory’s fire even more. He’s a strong-minded individual,” he said.
“For me, it was knowing how good my game is, how great of a place it’s in, and just continuing to execute knowing the statistics would eventually fall my way. Still hope. Golf, it’s a game of luck. There’s a lot of luck that has to happen and go your way out there.
“I knew if I could give my 100 percent effort on every single shot, I’d give myself a good chance this week, just like I did at the PGA, just like I did at the Masters.
“Rory is going to do it. I’d love to have a lot more battles with him. It would be a lot of fun. But, yeah, Rory’s going to do it at some point.”
DeChambeau was incredibly gracious, particularly as McIlroy left the course almost immediately after the winning putt dropped.
Perhaps his own performance over the final 18 holes at The Masters caused his frustration to come to the fore on Sunday.
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