Bryson DeChambeau, a shadow of his former brash self, leads the Masters

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Fresh off his 2020 U.S. Open win, Bryson DeChambeau made headlines when he said that, for him, the storied Masters course plays like a par-67 track, a pronouncement that rattled the dogwoods and starched the green jackets.

“Because I can reach all the par-5s in two, no problem,” he said.

Golf tends to punish such arrogance, and to no one’s surprise, Augusta National hit back. Hard.

In seven appearances here, DeChambeau has finished no better than 21st, including missed cuts each of the past two years. That 67 mark? He’d bested it just once in 24 rounds here.

Until Thursday.

DeChambeau, a different person and a different player in so many ways than he was four years ago, had the kind of day reserved for daydreams. Birdies on the first three holes and then again on five of the last seven. His opening-round 65 was the day’s top score, though because rain delayed the start of the tournament by 2½ hours, 27 players still need to finish their rounds Friday morning.

“I have a level of respect for this golf course that’s a little bit different than a couple years ago, and clearly today was a great test of golf,” DeChambeau said, “and I was able to conquer a very difficult golf course today.”

Despite his hot start, there are plenty of top players nipping at his heels, none closer than Scottie Scheffler, the world No. 1 who posted a bogey-free 66 and sits just one back. Tiger Woods is among those facing a long day of golf Friday. He stood at 1 under through 13 holes when the darkness halted play Thursday evening.

But DeChambeau was the pacesetter for this year’s tournament, staring down demons from past Augusta visits and showing he can be every bit as good with a putter as he is a driver. He put his tee shot on the par-3 16th hole just 6 feet from the pin. One hole later, a tricky 31-foot putt gave him one of only two birdies on the day on No. 17. A 335-yard drive on the par-4 third hole stopped just short of the green, setting up another easy birdie.

“It was a clinic,” said Gary Woodland, his playing partner. “It was impressive.”

DeChambeau still tinkers with technique and swaps out equipment. Now 30, he said he’s more patient than the young bomber who first set out to tame Augusta. That remark about the par-67 course – DeChambeau said it was misinterpreted but certainly wasn’t his best turn of phrase.

“You know, you mess up,” he said Thursday. “I’m not a perfect person. Everybody messes up. You learn from your mistake, and that was definitely one.”

He was asked if there might be some truth to it, though. After all, he birded three of the four par-5s Thursday and averaged 316 yards on his drives, sixth best on the day.

“You’re trying to pigeonhole me into saying that again, aren’t you?” he said. “I’m not going to comment on that.”

Another sign of evolution, perhaps. A reporter noted that the golf world has seen different versions of DeChambeau over the years – there was “a mad scientist phase” and a “bulky basher phase.” So what phase is he in now?

“The golf phase,” he responded. “Trying to be the best golfer I can be.”

He doesn’t need to blast the ball and scramble. Particularly on days like Thursday where a menacing high wind toyed with shots, DeChambeau has learned to be creative, to strategically place his shots, to not outmuscle a course that has humbled most of the game’s legends at one point or another.

“I’ve tried to be a little bit smarter out there on the golf course and not try to go for broke and go for every flag,” he said, “but place it in the right position.”

He talks like a man who’s learned from his mistakes. It’s not easy missing the cut and leaving Augusta National on a Friday. He posted a second-round 80 here in 2022 and a pair of 74s last year.

“It’s been extremely disappointing,” he said, “especially with how (much) I love this golf course, love the patrons, love the members, love the golf course conditions. Everything about it, it’s something I’ve dreamed of always winning my entire life.”

He’s long been subjected to intense scrutiny and has been one of the game’s most polarizing players for much of his career. After absconding to LIV Golf in 2022, criticism only intensified, particularly after he put his name to a lawsuit against the PGA Tour (which has since been settled). DeChambeau proudly waves the LIV banner, even as he talks about reconciliation across the sport. He wore a Crushers hat on the course Thursday and gave Greg Norman, the LIV Golf chief executive, a big hug coming off the 18th green.

“That’s a pretty big misconception, that I’m divisive,” he said. “I’m really not. I don’t try to be. It may come off that way because I’m passionate about certain things and certain subjects.”

While he maintains an active social media presence, his game has evolved without the same attention and fanfare he saw in 2020, when he finished fourth at the PGA Championship and then won the U.S. Open by six strokes. At a LIV Golf event last August, DeChambeau posted a second-round 61, followed by a final-round 58, incredible marks that didn’t create the same stir they would’ve had they come on the PGA Tour.

Regardless of how history views those numbers, DeChambeau knew immediately it was a sign that his game was pointed in the right direction, that maybe it foretold his next visit to Augusta might be different. He said he turned to his caddie, Greg Bodine, following his 58 at the Greenbrier in West Virginia, and told him, “I can’t wait for April.”

Well, it is April, and DeChambeau is leading the Masters. There are 54 holes ahead of him – and no shortage of talent right behind him – but he’s off to the kind of start that even his younger, brasher, too-honest self might not have expected.

“I shot 65 today, and that was one of the best rounds of golf I’ve played in a long time,” he said. “There’s three more days to go, and I’m not losing sight of that fact; that it’s right there in front of me. Just got to go execute.”