Bryson DeChambeau put the golfing world on notice in 2016 when the amateur took the lead at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship with a superb 64 in the opening round.
The 2016 Abu Dhabi Golf Championship on the European Tour boasted an incredibly strong field, with the likes of Rory McIlroy, Jordan Spieth, Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler among those who teed it up.
It would be Fowler who emerged victorious as he finished one shot clear of Thomas Pieters.
But following that week more than nine years ago, there was plenty of interest in the American amateur Bryson DeChambeau.
Why Bryson DeChambeau issued an apology at a European Tour event in 2016
DeChambeau had initially grabbed the headlines for the right reasons after putting himself at the top of the leaderboard with a 64. The 22-year-old admitted that he was stunned to set the pace at Yas Links.
“It was quite incredible,” he told Sky Sports. “I had no expectations and was just able to freewheel a little bit and that allows me to do my best.”
Unfortunately, he ended up in a tie for 54th by the end of the week. And he was involved in an incident on the second day which led to DeChambeau apologising on social media.
DeChambeau was playing alongside McIlroy and Andy Sullivan – who would be paired together for the first session at the Ryder Cup later that year. On the ninth hole, Sullivan – who was leading at the time – hit a wayward drive towards the water.
No one saw whether the Englishman’s ball ended up in the hazard. With that, almost everyone – including McIlroy – looked in the bushes nearby to see if they could find Sullivan’s ball.
However, one person who did not get involved in the search was DeChambeau, who instead decided to stay with his ball in the fairway and assess his next shot.
Sullivan’s ball was not located, meaning that he had to go back to the tee.
As Sky Sports noted at the time, DeChambeau would quickly issue an apology on social media and insist that he made a mistake. He had assumed that Sullivan’s ball had gone into the water.
Bryson DeChambeau deserves credit for rarely shying away from fronting up to criticism
What you always have to credit DeChambeau for is his respect for the game. And when he does make a mistake, it is incredibly rare to see him make the same mistake for a second time.
He is also not afraid to poke fun at himself when he has got things wrong. That is arguably one of the reasons why he has experienced such a turnaround and become one of the most popular golfers in the world.
And you would imagine that DeChambeau would now be one of the first to get stuck into searching if one of his playing partners was in a similar situation these days.
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