Bryson DeChambeau Disappointed After Another Close Call

“Don't double 17 and bogey 16, I mean, you name it,” DeChambeau said after his round on Sunday about his calamitous missteps in the third round. “I got a dozen shots I could look back at and be like, man, that could have been way different.”

That’s major championship golf — 155 players asking "what if?" and one posing no questions as he is the one with the trophy in the end.

Like a Marvel character, the long-hitting DeChambeau is still figuring out his powers and how he can get the most out of a game that is near the top of professional golf’s pyramid.

Because of the rift between the PGA Tour and LIV Golf, DeChambeau’s talents can’t be measured in the usual way, through the world rankings, so the 31-year-old’s game has to be measured four times a year at the majors.

In the most significant events, DeChambeau has shone, with five top-six finishes in the last six majors; he is one of the best American players in a Ryder Cup year.

However, he still has flaws, and upon analyzing his game, DeChambeau identifies his most significant issue, primarily with his equipment. It's particularly with the golf ball and irons, and mainly due to the excessive clubhead speed generated.

The issues are not easily solved, and while DeChambeau has been working with certain ball manufacturers to address how the ball reacts to speeds of up to 190 mph, he still doesn’t have an answer.

“I'm going to work my butt off to make that happen,” DeChambeau said of addressing his equipment issues. “Well, never, no. I mean, it's all up to manufacturing, so we'll see what happens. But I'm keen on finding something I'm keen on improving, so I'm excited for that.”

With just one event before the U.S. Open — LIV Virginia, which is the week before the Open — DeChambeau will take some time to learn the tricky green complexes at Oakmont the week before the LIV event in hopes of accomplishing a rare feat.

“Just gonna go out and check the greens out and see what it offers, and prep a little early this year,” DeChambeau said. “I want to go back-to-back, I want to defend.