Last week, when Bryson DeChambeau went on Katie Miller’s podcast to talk about a wide range of topics, a couple of his quotes went viral.
There was one about him not believing the moon landing footage (honestly, I’m surprised he even thinks we went to the moon in the first place).
But the one that hit even more was how he is wrestling with his future in golf.
“I’m in that weird space right now, I don’t know what to do, either content creation or professional golf. I don’t know what to do right now.”
Imagine trying to explain this to Ben Hogan. Hell, imagine trying to explain this to Ben Griffin …
We’ve seen this evolution of Bryson as a golf figure. He started as the nerdy mad scientist with the single-length clubs, side-saddle putting and a weird hat. He beefed up and chased distance. He went to LIV and started a bustling YouTube channel, carefully curating his image and getting a PR glow up.
Golf fans started out as curious because he was doing things differently; then they thought he was obnoxious/not self-aware for doing things like berating sponsors, asking for a second opinion for bizarre rules questions and shooting 15-minute videos of himself frying bacon shirtless during the pandemic; then they thought he was a man of the people for putting such concerted efforts into content creation.
From cool to uncool to cool. From popular to vilified to popular.
Polarizing, captivating, or both … depending on whom you ask.
But based on the temperature reading I’m getting talking to friends and reading reactions online, the overwhelming emotion currently is that people are just tired of Bryson’s shtick.
And the quote I mentioned at the top of this story kind of sums it all up. The guy has won two majors, is a top-10 player in the world and still doesn’t know if he even wants to play professional golf anymore, a possibility he has been teasing throughout the year like he is doing a promo for a reality show.
Two things can be true at the same time:
- Bryson is a fascinating character and great to have in the game of golf because he provides a wildly different perspective and is willing to let fans in with content creation. He’s an awesome player and is always causing headlines, a positive given how bland pro golf can be. He is one of the few guys who truly moves the needle in our game.
- Bryson is also exhausting. He feels a lot like clicking the “For You” section on Twitter which might be Dante’s ninth circle of hell. There is always an angle, a scheme, a dumb quote, a new TikTok or a hole-in-one challenge over his house. He’s the Nickelodeon golfer.
I want to take you back to the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla, in the heat of the aforementioned glow up for Bryson’s image.
Back on the PGA Tour, DeChambeau was getting “Brooksy” chirps, taking three minutes to hit shots and blaming his equipment at every turn. His reputation in and out of the public eye was pretty sour.
Then he went to LIV. Golf fans started to only see him contending at the majors—and on YouTube, where he invested more resources than any top professional golfer. That investment provided a ton of goodwill. Even some of his haters turned into fans.
By that PGA Championship, I wrote a column titled “Admit It—You’re Becoming A Bryson Fan.” Here is an excerpt from that story.
“Bryson had became something of a pariah on the PGA Tour, and it was a well-earned distinction. He repeatedly proved his selfishness and lack of self-awareness, whether it was unfairly blaming manufacturers, calling Augusta National a par-67 or giving nonsensical lessons in pseudo physics.
“Fans may have respected his willingness to think about golf in a unique way, but the respect didn’t go much further than that. He came across as an immature know-it-all who was a serious golfer but not a person to take seriously.
“Well, Bryson haters among us, it’s time to admit he’s become a lot more palatable in the past year or so...
“As someone who spent ample time griping about Bryson (or just flat-out making fun of him), I think it’s undeniable that the game is significantly more interesting when he is involved.
“On Sunday at the PGA Championship, the fans were firmly in his corner. On-site reports were unanimous—the crowd wanted him to win more than eventual champion Xander Schauffele.
“And why wouldn’t they? Bryson is one of the only players of this generation who genuinely seems to care about the fan experience. He offers visceral reactions after key shots, showing how badly he wants to win. He is tossing golf balls to kids and making sure that shameless adults aren’t running off with the souvenir. He is creating content online that a younger audience identifies with in a real way.
“He realizes there is more to golf than playing it well and picking up a paycheck. He has invested in that.”
I don’t regret saying any of that because that’s how I felt at the time. I still appreciate Bryson’s showmanship and emphasis on the fans although we’ve been seeing less of it given his recent ejections from majors.
What I will say is that, ultimately, there is something of a shelf life for a guy like Bryson.
He’s someone who comes off as calculated, not genuine. Bryson feels like a know-it-all algorithm trying to twist and turn himself into being beloved. He thinks about what other people want to see him do in order to be popular (which, to be fair, can be extremely effective in the year of our Lord, 2026).
You can’t pull off that trick forever. You are eventually going to wear on a lot of people.
When fans see you hit a bunker shot too long and then complain about the lack of rough after your terrible shot, it’s another reminder that the edited version of Bryson is a lot different than the raw one.
Those reminders have been popping up recently (that he continues to venture into politics—he refused to do media at the PGA Championship but spilled his heart on a right-wing podcast—adds to his divisiveness).
If he goes off on his own with YouTube and doesn’t dedicate himself to play competitive golf, a lot of people are going to rightfully criticize him for putting his brand ahead of his legacy.
He has always been a polarizing figure but it seems public sentiment is turning more negative than it has been in a long time.
Maybe not so much from love to hate … but from intrigue to exhaustion.
What are your thoughts on Bryson? Let me know below in the comments.
Top Photo Caption: Bryson DeChambeau gets frustrated during the PGA Championship. (GETTY IMAGES/Emilee Chinn)
Milt deReyna
3 weeks ago
Exhaustion is maybe the right word. It’s kind of like talking about the PGA Tour money list. It’s gotten so out of touch with reality, that it’s become boring, nauseating, and something I just don’t give a damn about anymore. For me, that describes Bryson perfectly. I’ve had enough.