Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau came head-to-head during the final round of The Masters in 2025.
McIlroy got the better of DeChambeau in the end, winning The Masters for the first time and completing the career Grand Slam in the process.
The Northern Irishman won at Augusta National on the 16th time of trying and he will now go down as one of the greatest golfers to have ever graced the game.
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Interestingly, McIlroy actually received more support than DeChambeau from the Masters patrons during the final round at Augusta National 12 months ago.
There was real tension after the round when DeChambeau claimed that McIlroy didn’t say a single word to him throughout the day.
In fairness to the five-time major champion, he was there to compete and, in order to be at his best, he needed to be 100 per cent focused.
However, it has since come out that the two players did share an exchange midway through the final round of The Masters.
And the revelation from McIlroy is the last thing DeChambeau needed to hear right now.
Rory McIlroy’s ill-timed Bryson DeChambeau comments ahead of The Masters
McIlroy has just opened up on how he and DeChambeau had a slight disagreement on the ninth green during the final round of The Masters last year.
“Both of us want to putt first, because if you can hole that putt before your opponent, it puts pressure on them,” McIlroy said.
“He [DeChambeau] goes ‘so why don’t we just throw a tee up for it to see who goes first?’ I’m like ‘no, this is the final round of the Masters, this isn’t some game on a Tuesday afternoon somewhere!’ I wasn’t going to wilt in that situation, I was going to stand firm.”
McIlroy then suggested that they should call a rules official to measure the two putts, but DeChambeau declined, telling the Northern Irishman to go ahead and putt first.
Firstly, I want to make it very clear that it is my opinion that McIlroy completely overreacted in that situation.
He seemingly feels like he has come across as an ultra-fierce competitor but he’s ended up looking fairly weak-minded.
Perhaps it should be no surprise it took him so long to win The Masters. And on the flip side, it’s clear that DeChambeau wasn’t fazed one little bit, he was just thinking about making his putt rather than the psychological battle that McIlroy had going on in his head.
However, that debate is for another day. Right now, we’re here to talk about the impact Rory McIlroy’s comments may have on Bryson DeChambeau.
Bryson DeChambeau didn’t need to hear Rory McIlroy’s comments before The Masters
DeChambeau has been in fine form on LIV Golf so far in 2026.
He has just won back-to-back tournaments and he will be flying high on confidence heading into The Masters.
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However, McIlroy’s comments on what happened at Augusta National last year have come at a really inopportune time for DeChambeau.
The 32-year-old from Dallas, Texas, is a hugely emotional character as it is.
He is someone who needs to tone things down emotionally out on the golf course.
However, McIlroy’s comments just before the Masters will undoubtedly have the opposite effect on DeChambeau.
The Northern Irishman tried to make the American look silly, and that definitely will not have pleased him.
The best thing for DeChambeau to do will be to completely ignore McIlroy’s comments. However, it will be very hard for the LIV golfer not to be drawn into a personal battle with the PGA Tour star next month at Augusta National.
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