Bryson DeChambeau missed out on nearly $280,000 in prize money after receiving a two-shot penalty at The Open Championship. The 32-year-old American was involved in a clash with officials during the second round at Royal Birkdale after appearing to trample the grass behind his ball.
DeChambeau was docked two shots for inadvertently improving his lie, despite demanding to be returned to the site of the incident and angrily protesting his innocence. The LIV Golf star threatened to withdraw from the major and call US President Donald Trump, who is a close friend.
The two-stroke penalty saw DeChambeau slip to three shots off the lead at the halfway stage, and he slid further down the leaderboard on Sunday. In the end, he finished in a tie for 14th place earning $234,325 in prize money, as Ryan Fox took home the Claret Jug.
Had he finished two shots better off, DeChambeau would have been in a four-way tie for sixth place and taken home $514,212. The double US Open champion made $37.2million on the PGA Tour before joining LIV on a four-and-a-half-year deal worth a reported $125m.
Presidential threat and White House response
On Monday, well-placed sources confirmed to Daily Mail Sport that DeChambeau warned he might seek a presidential intervention at the height of the drama. However, unlike the World Cup controversy involving USMNT striker Folarin Balogun, the White House did not get involved and the penalty was not overturned.
Player reactions to Birkdale penalty
Reactions among fellow players followed the second-round incident. While Scottie Scheffler insisted DeChambeau was not a cheat, Rory McIlroy was scathing of his rival's antics when speaking on Saturday.
The world No 2 said: "I was up in the players' lounge watching it with a few other players and as soon as he made the step into the ball, we all sort of looked at each other and we were like, 'That didn't seem right.' Then when I heard that he was called in by the rules officials, it was pretty obvious for why."
McIlroy added: "I think a lot of it's performative. I think a lot of it is for attention. To hold the tournament hostage like that and to have all of us, players, volunteers, everyone waiting on him to depart, I didn't feel like it was a great look."
