Pro golf. With DeChambeau’s transformation, is this the future of golf?
- Thread starter Judson1
- Start date
They will change the course like they did when Tiger was Doing his thing
Should you wait and see if he actually makes the cut at a major before thinking he’s really changing the game?
Never said he was changing the game. But people have taken notice of his changes. His wedge play isn’t major worthy and he will have to be very accurate with that driver.
His best major finish is 15th I think. I just hope we see ANY major sometime soon.
A big driver and a putter can take you a long way
Just look at these numbers…
He is also the first player to win a PGA Tour event averaging more than 350 yards off the tee.
And despite that, it was actually DeChambeau’s putter that did the damage.
Meanwhile, DeChambeau has played in all four events since the PGA Tour’s restart and is 69-under-par for that stretch, 20 shots better than second-placed Viktor Hovland – who is proving that driving through the night to each event is having little effect on his game.
Just look at these numbers…
- 1st in Driving Distance (350.6 yards)
- 1st in Strokes Gained: Off the Tee (+6.672)
- 1st in Strokes Gained: Putting (+7.831)
He is also the first player to win a PGA Tour event averaging more than 350 yards off the tee.
And despite that, it was actually DeChambeau’s putter that did the damage.
Meanwhile, DeChambeau has played in all four events since the PGA Tour’s restart and is 69-under-par for that stretch, 20 shots better than second-placed Viktor Hovland – who is proving that driving through the night to each event is having little effect on his game.
It worked for happy gilmore..
Lengthening courses is not the answer. Tightening them is. I've always liked DeChambeau. His quest to be different is refreshing. Playing with that much exertion isn't sustainable but for so long. Either he will lose form or he will get hurt, regardless of what he does in the gym.
It seems to me as if all of these current players are just robots. Tends to get boring for me. What has happened to all of the "characters" of the game? Guys with personality? A few that come to mind at the moment are Chi Chi Rodriguez, Lee Trevino, Gary McCord, Fuzzy Zoeller, and Arnie. And the ultimate to me is John Daly. I know I am leaving out many but these guys made the game more entertaining in my opinion.
I’m not sure other guys could or would risk doing this. He’s completely changed his tempo and is literally swinging out of his shoes on every drive. I’m sure some players may try it, but I don’t see it changing the game immediately.
However if he sticks with this and starts dominating, then, yes it will change the game over time.
However if he sticks with this and starts dominating, then, yes it will change the game over time.
I like the tournaments where the course wins and writing down PAR is king.
Watching his swing side by side with some of the other guys over the weekend being more than twice as fast to impact is pretty amazing and takes extreme talent to hit it anywhere close to straight, and all with very little to any hinge! I think he's a blast to watch, hit it as far as you can, go find it and hit it again and sink a putt, isn't that what golf is all about! Wish Nance would quit gushing and Faldo would quit hating though!
IMO, this will not continue. You can't overpower major venues/ most courses that they will play week in and week out with just hitting it long. If it was a one-day 18 hole shootout then possibly, but 72 holes on ball placement and course management are paramount to being successful in the majors which they soon will be coming up on. When you start to bring in the rough-line and make hitting fairways a premium mixed with wedge play... it will even things back out. Bryson is horribly inconsistent with his wedges, Sir Nick even made comment to it over the broadcast Sunday.
The courses that they've played haven't been the teeth of the tour season. It will be interesting to see how he competes over the next several tournaments when you can't just "grip it and rip it"
He is reportedly using a Cobra King Speedzone driver. I am seeing very good reviews on that driver. Lots of power plus forgiveness.
I use a Nike Speed Velocity 52 degree wedge from 105yds and in, I have gotten rather good with it.
Guys, not saying that was a US Open caliber venue, but it was a Donald Ross course which are usually fairly tight and tree lined, the rough wasn't easy at all, just saying he dominated it at 7,300, not too shabby!
I agree. That fact shows up in the tougher tournaments like the Open and the US Open when they let the rough grow and the fairways and greens get hard and fast. When they create tougher conditions demanding accuracy, and a deft touch with the putter, length off the tee is not as much of an advantage.
This has BEEN the trend since Tiger took the scene over- the ole “bomb and gash” game has been growing in popularity for a decade or two. Bryson is just the most extreme example we have seen thus far. In short, YES, this is absolutely where golf and all sports are going- athletes are Getting bigger, stronger, faster.. in all sports and realizing that regardless of the sport, being a freakishly fit/strong person helps tremendously!
It’s been before Tiger. He started the trend with people “loving the long ball” but every time someone has come along with the ability to out drive people it’s going to change the game. I remember hearing it when Nicklaus started but only he and Woods were able to play a complete game for an extended period of time. Most have been like Daly and got people talking then faded off.
The wedge comment isn't entirely correct, the shotscope was picking up his drives from the greens machine skewing his numbers.
His is 5.5*. Cobra makes great products, I have a full bag, just switched to their irons this year. Love my F9 Driver.
Distance is to the PGA what speed is to NASCAR. Fans love it; so it will stay. Even with modern nutrition and supplements, the dude STILL has to put the time at the gym to get that swole ALONG with his golf practice and training. Most people will not have the personal drive to do that; even among touring pros who are use to hard work. I personally don't think it will become a trend.
Adding 40 pounds might affect his longevity as that's a lot of extra weight to carry for 25-30 years.Many golfers over the years have transformed their bodies,but it seems they eventually go back to what is natural.We'll see.
One of the comments I was referring to was talking about how he struggles controlling his wedge distances. They were suggesting he look into experimenting with putting steel shafts in his wedges, which I didn't realize he also had graphite in his wedges. Graphite is great if you're going 110% on shots, but the finesse/touch shots you lose some of the "feel". He made up for it this past week with his great putting, but if you watched his wedge game... it was pretty bad IMO.
He certainly has flaunted his physical development over the past year. One would think that he hasn’t violated the tours PED policy. Regardless of his physical stature he must still have an exceptional short game and be a really good putter in order to dominate the tour. We shall see.
With the modern graphite shaft, I would disagree about the losing of the feel. I have used them for a while and never had a feel issue myself.
Yes, I had elbow issues after playing C Tapers for a few years, switched to recoils. I match my wedge shafts to my irons, consistent feel is what I want/looking for.
I picked up a couple of 56* Nike wedges on clearance when they got out of the equipment game. Still using them. They are butter.
Here is a change that might be coming. I saw on the golf channel that there will be a recommended change in the putting stroke. Right now guys like Bryson place the putter grip on the forearm and anchor with the other hand (called arm lock putting). This makes the putter an extension of the arm and takes away the "swing" of the putter and some say that takes away athletic ability. Bryson uses this along with others and they are all putting well. Kuchar uses it too.
True, historically these long hitters had not faired well in the PGA, again UNTIL TIGER. Think about the best golfers now- Bubba Watson, Ricky Fowler, Rory, Brooks... Most of the best golfers today hit drives that- prior to Tiger’s influence- would have been considered monster drives! All can be considered some form of Bomb and Gauge golfers (think I called it bomb and gash earlier, my bad)... While during Daly’s time it is true- most of the best golfers were more of the old school type and employed more a finesse game, in today’s golf, Bomb and Gauge has taken over and is here to stay. People can hate on Bryson all they want or talk about if they think he won’t last because he is putting so much torque on his back... But he has like 6-7 consecutive too 10 finishes since the season started back and he showed up transformed. He has always been a “good golfer”, would win on average about 1 tour win per year. Now? He is the odds on favorite to win the Masters!
These long drives are not “going to change the game”, they already have! To see someone who was criticized for being too mechanical, and an absolute detail obsessed technician like Bryson to adopt the “bomb” strategy like he has... Well he won’t take even a 4 foot put historically without reading the green from every angle, checking the weather, humidity, wind and his horoscope... It just shows the research/data is showing that it leads to more success. He would not have done it otherwise, and the results have been positive for him so far.
Personally I think it is inspiring! Growing up in an age when many baseball players and golfers were commonly built more like Craig Staddler (“The Walrus) than the ripped/shredded version we saw of Tiger once he hit his prime... I am happy to see that these pro sports are finally exploring what can be accomplished in their sports when we see people playing it at peak physical condition! Baseball tried to go too far, too fast in the 90s- let’s hope we do not have a steroid epidemic in golf in response to what Bryson is doing.
He was using speedzone Cobra one length irons. I think all the irons are the same length as a 7 iron.
Similar threads
