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Bryson DeChambeau's penalty leaves big question mark at The Open
Bryson DeChambeau. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Bryson DeChambeau's penalty leaves big question mark at The Open

The first two rounds of The Open Championship have been something of a good news/bad news situation for Bryson DeChambeau. 

Let's start with the good news.

The good news is he made it through the opening two rounds and successfully made the cut. This is a big development for him after he had missed the cut in each of the three previous Majors that he played in, as well as four of the past five, and five of the past eight.

It has been a struggle for him lately on the biggest stage. He changed that in a big way on Thursday and Friday, with pretty much everything going his way.

Almost everything. 

That brings us to the bad news, which may still involve him not actually playing on the weekend. 

Bryson DeChambeau gets two-stroke penalty on the fifth hole at the Open Championship

DeChambeau is going into Saturday five-under par and in a tie for fifth place. That was after initially finishing his round seven-under, for what would have been sole possession of second-place, just one stroke off the lead. 

The change is due to a two-stroke penalty that was enforced after PGA officials determined he inadvertently improved the area of his intended second shot on the fifth hole.

Basically, they said he wasn't careful enough in a sensitive area as he moved toward his ball and prepared for his shot.

Here is Grant Moir, the chief rules referee at The Open, explaining the situation.

The sequence started when DeChambeau's tee shot on No. 5 went into tall grass beyond the penalty area. Instead of taking a penalty stroke, DeChambeau elected to play the ball as it lay and walked through the grass to take his shot.

He ended up with a bogey on the hole. 

But before DeChambeau could sign his scorecard, course officials met with him and his caddy, went back to the fifth hole, and stood in the location where he hit his second shot. DeChambeau was clearly agitated and angry during the discussion and was not able to convince officials that he did not improve his situation. 

It was believed that DeChambeau had told the officials during the discussion back at the fifth hole that he was not going to play on Saturday, presumably in protest of the decision.

His agent, Brett Falkoff, said (via The Athletic), "Your guess is as good as mine" when asked if DeChambeau actually intends to play on Saturday. 

Adam Gretz

Adam Gretz is a freelance writer based in Pittsburgh. He covers the NHL, NFL, MLB and NBA. Baseball is his favorite sport -- he is nearly halfway through his goal of seeing a game in every MLB ballpark. Catch him on X @AGretz

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