MORE: LIV star comes from nowhere to shoot lowest score in major history See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy RIATH AL-SAMARRAI AT ROYAL BIRKDALE and JAMES SHARPE Published: 21:12 BST, 17 July 2026 | Updated: 22:22 BST, 17 July 2026
Bryson DeChambeau has raised doubts about his continued participation in The Open after a two-stroke penalty on Friday night sparked a furious row with tournament officials.The American's representative Brett Falkoff admitted 'your guess is as good as mine' when asked if the double US Open champion would take the extraordinary step of withdrawing in the wake of his second-round 66 at Royal Birkdale.DeChambeau had just stormed to within one shot of Lucas Herbert's lead only to be informed of television footage that appeared to show him improving his lie in the deep rough on the fifth hole of his second-round 66.What followed was a remarkable saga that lasted over an hour as DeChambeau demanded to be taken by buggy back to the spot of the incident, where he erupted at two rules officials.The 32-year-old was visibly irate as he protested his innocence against what was later clarified by chief referee Grant Moir as an 'inadvertent improving of the area' behind his ball.Footage of the original incident showed DeChambeau wading through the long grass before planting his right foot directly behind his ball – an act that flattened the fescue and would have allowed an easier backswing.Bryson DeChambeau is in a spirited discussion with the rules official at the 5th hole talking about his possible two-stroke penalty. 😳 pic.twitter.com/Cq2aCrTqIT— GOLF.com (@GOLF_com) July 17, 2026 Bryson DeChambeau was embroiled in a dramatic argument with rules officials at The Open The LIV Golf star was driven back to the fifth hole to discuss whether he improved his lie Before long, DeChambeau's score on the official leaderboard was changed to 68After failing to satisfy officials that there had been no improvement to his lie, DeChambeau demanded to Daily Mail Sport photographer Kevin Quigley to 'stop taking pictures' before embarking on a further 30-minute discussion with tournament bosses in the scorers' hut. Eventually, he emerged with a greeting of 'how's your evening' to more than 50 waiting reporters before making no further comment on his way to the driving range, where he signed an autograph for a single waiting fan.The fact he continued working on his swing would suggest he intends to resume his challenge for the Claret Jug on Saturday, but Falkoff's remarks injected doubt.Falkoff added: 'The only comment I'll make is that they just felt that he was not careful enough in walking around a sensitive area around his golf ball, so that he improved his swing path when the swing path was not even anywhere near the grass.'DeChambeau will return on five under par, three behind Herbert, who equalled the lowest ever round at a major with a 62 – later matched by Sam Burns, who sits in a tie for fifth on five under, alongside DeChambeau.Chief referee Moir said: 'Bryson has been penalized two strokes for inadvertently improving the area of his intended swing, so intended backswing on the 5th hole when he was playing his second shot. At the end of the dramatic saga, he sat in a tie for fifth - three shots off leader Lucas HerbertDeChambeau has raised doubts about his continued participation in The Open this weekend 'Ruling 1 restricts what a player may do to improve any of the protected conditions affecting the stroke, and this includes the area of the player's intended swing. 'So an improvement means to alter one or more of the conditions affecting the stroke so that the player gains a potential advantage for the stroke.'Now, I'll stress that this applies even when the action is accidental, as it was in Bryson's case.'
