Bryson DeChambeau hit drives of 325, 331, 342, 334, 327, 352, 321 and 347 yards. He was tied for second among all golfers in driving distance after Thursday’s first round of the PGA Championship. DeChambeau even broke his driver after a drive, the club snapping at the head on the 7th hole.
Adam Scott expected Bryson to hit the ball even longer.
Scott had not played since the first round of the Players Championship in March due first to the PGA Tour’s three-month hiatus due to the coronavirus and then due to his decision to remain in his native Australia during the pandemic. From across the globe, he had seen DeChambeau’s increase in driving length since the Tour’s restart in June, the result of DeChambeau’s increase in size. On Thursday at TPC Harding Park, Scott was grouped with DeChambeau. From up close, he saw for himself.
“Yeah, he’s hitting it long. There’s no doubt about it. Not to like put him down any, but I thought it was going to be longer,” Scott said to laughter on Thursday. “There’s been so much buildup, me reading the news and listening to him and watching him play, I thought I was going to see like almost one of those long-drive guys.”
Like Happy Gilmore, also, to quote his fictional movie, an amazing golf ball whacker guy?
Bryson DeChambeau has transformed himself. But will he also transform the game?
“Almost,” Scott said. “Look, he hits it really far, but fortunately I still hit it long enough to not feel like I’m playing a different golf course, completely. Maybe that’s just this course, though.”
Scott is hitting it long enough. Well enough, too.
He shot a 2-under 68 on Thursday. He shot an even-par 70 on Friday. The rounds followed his preparation at a course in South Carolina after he returned to the U.S. a few weeks ago.
Scott said he would give himself a “good grade” on his first round in five months.
“Of course, there wasn’t, you know, the anticipation like going to tee off in a major with the atmosphere and everything that you can sometimes build up in your own mind before the first tee shot, but that might have helped keep me fairly calm,” Scott said Thursday. “And I just kind of thought today, just go and play a round of golf.
“I’ve been playing a fair few rounds at home. I know it’s not with a scorecard, really, in the hand, but I’ve been playing OK there. I felt like the game was in pretty good shape and I’ve done the work I needed to do to be sharp enough.”