Bryson DeChambeau is now a professional...

[newtogolf]

T4 in his debut is pretty impressive.  I realize it wasn't the most competitive field and the top guys that were in it were pretty wiped out from last week but it's still a great finish.  Seems like he needs to work on his putting some more, maybe the fast greens and tough pin placements are something he's not used it.  

[Golfingdad]

5 minutes ago, Rainmaker said:

I always love to see greatness - even if I kind of find him annoying.  Hoping for greatness.

I like the way you put this.

[natureboy]

15 minutes ago, newtogolf said:

T4 in his debut is pretty impressive.  I realize it wasn't the most competitive field and the top guys that were in it were pretty wiped out from last week but it's still a great finish.  Seems like he needs to work on his putting some more, maybe the fast greens and tough pin placements are something he's not used it.  

He was at that Masters too (T-21), and near the lead for a bit.

[Ernest Jones]

11 hours ago, Golfingdad said:

 Unfortunately, considering how much time they spent last year telling us that Jordan Spieth was only 21 years old, I don't think the irons topic is going anywhere for awhile.

Yeah, it's funny, such a big story last year and they hardly ever mention it anymore. 

[Chilli Dipper]

T4 was worth $259,600 and 123 FedEx Cup points. That puts Bryson one-third of the way toward both earning special temporary status on tour for the rest of this season, and securing his tour card for next season (based on the total for 125th on 2015's money list). As was the case for Jordan Spieth a few years ago, the only way for Bryson to earn full membership privileges and qualify for the end-of-season playoffs this year is with a victory. Based on his performance at Hilton Head, that option is not outside the realm of possibility.

[14ledo81]

1 hour ago, Ernest Jones said:

Yeah, it's funny, such a big story last year and they hardly ever mention it anymore. 

Well yah....  he's 22 now........... not a big deal anymore...

[newtogolf]

37 minutes ago, Chilli Dipper said:

T4 was worth $259,600 and 123 FedEx Cup points. That puts Bryson one-third of the way toward both earning special temporary status on tour for the rest of this season, and securing his tour card for next season (based on the total for 125th on 2015's money list). As was the case for Jordan Spieth a few years ago, the only way for Bryson to earn full membership privileges and qualify for the end-of-season playoffs this year is with a victory. Based on his performance at Hilton Head, that option is not outside the realm of possibility.

I agree, if he had played better on Saturday he could have been battling it out with Grace yesterday.  I'm sure he'll be smart and look for fields that are a bit weaker where he feels he has a better chance to win.  

[DeadMan]

T4 with 0 strokes gained putting, too. I saw a stat on Sunday that had him #1 in strokes gained tee to green. I can't find if that stayed true after Sunday's round finished, but that is pretty impressive. I wouldn't be surprised to see him win this year at all.

He's definitely an intriguing golfer. I watched a bit of him on Saturday and was pretty impressed. Honestly, he is somebody we should think about putting on the Ryder Cup team.

[Golfingdad]

2 hours ago, newtogolf said:

I agree, if he had played better on Saturday he could have been battling it out with Grace yesterday.  I'm sure he'll be smart and look for fields that are a bit weaker where he feels he has a better chance to win.  

I don't think so ... I heard him during his press conference on Tuesday listing off the tournaments that he hoped to play and it sounded like he was listing nearly all of them.

He needs to rack up points and money so I think he'll play as often as he can handle, regardless of the fields.  Once he's "made it" he'll have the luxury of being more picky, I would think.  Whether that be this season after a victory (agree with @Chilli Dipper that it's certainly possible) or next or some year in the future remains to be seen.

[Gunther]

15 minutes ago, Golfingdad said:

I don't think so ... I heard him during his press conference on Tuesday listing off the tournaments that he hoped to play and it sounded like he was listing nearly all of them.

He needs to rack up points and money so I think he'll play as often as he can handle, regardless of the fields.  Once he's "made it" he'll have the luxury of being more picky, I would think.  Whether that be this season after a victory (agree with @Chilli Dipper that it's certainly possible) or next or some year in the future remains to be seen.

Agree, strength of field is almost certainly not something he's considering right now.  And, once he does make it and gains the ability to be more discerning, he'll be looking at just the opposite, that is, the stronger fields are in the best events so that's what he'll target.

[RFKFREAK]

40 minutes ago, DeadMan said:

T4 with 0 strokes gained putting, too. I saw a stat on Sunday that had him #1 in strokes gained tee to green. I can't find if that stayed true after Sunday's round finished, but that is pretty impressive. I wouldn't be surprised to see him win this year at all.

He's definitely an intriguing golfer. I watched a bit of him on Saturday and was pretty impressed. Honestly, he is somebody we should think about putting on the Ryder Cup team.

You're kidding, right?

[newtogolf]

47 minutes ago, Golfingdad said:

I don't think so ... I heard him during his press conference on Tuesday listing off the tournaments that he hoped to play and it sounded like he was listing nearly all of them.

He needs to rack up points and money so I think he'll play as often as he can handle, regardless of the fields.  Once he's "made it" he'll have the luxury of being more picky, I would think.  Whether that be this season after a victory (agree with @Chilli Dipper that it's certainly possible) or next or some year in the future remains to be seen.

The only reason why I said he might be selective is he only has 7 more exemptions unless he finishes Top 10 or wins one, so he should be somewhat selective unless he just believes he can finish top 10 for the rest of the season.   

[DeadMan]

15 minutes ago, RFKFREAK said:

You're kidding, right?

No. He just won a bunch of matches in a high pressure environment at the US Amateur. I would much rather see him than Jim Furyk, Bill Haas, Webb Simpson, or any other veteran that has been a part of multiple Ryder Cup failures in the past. He shouldn't be in over someone like Koepka or Justin Thomas, sure. But he has the length and winning match play experience that would make him an asset. DeChambeau was also the second best US player at the last Walker Cup.

I'm sure it's a moot point unless DeChambeau wins a tournament. Love won't pick him. But I would much rather see young blood than failed veterans.

[rehmwa]

Seems like a good kid.

1 - The Hat - Cal Peete, Payne Stewart, many others - it's a GOLF hat.  no big deal.  Seems the old timers that talk fashion here would like it.  At least you guys that think a nice watch, or non-cargo shorts, is a big deal.  I think these two guys were given a hard time about their hats - silly pretenders.

2 - Confidence - name a pro that isn't.

3 - Swing vs Distance Charting - He's taken data and tracked a crapload of increments - so what - golf is about reducing variability - this is just a version of "aim small, miss small".  Nick Faldo "Hey, I did that".  I doubt you can name any serious pro that doesn't have some means to track club and swing vs distance and flight.

4 - Feel vs mechanics - there is no 'vs' in there.  Feel and mechanics go together.  the 'feel' purists won't like that someone puts thought into the physics of their game.  Frankly, those that don't I find just self deluded.  so there! .  Tons of threads on this already, no one is convincing anyone otherwise.  Again reducing variability is the key - find it, reduce it.  Use whatever swing thought does the job for you.  Seems we have an entire forum where the main leaders spend a lot of time analyzing the mechanics (and then how to find a feel to get those mechanics correct).  I like it.

I'll wait to see how the kid does in reality.  So far, pretty impressive debut.  Good paycheck for the first tourney as a pro.

[RFKFREAK]

1 hour ago, DeadMan said:

No. He just won a bunch of matches in a high pressure environment at the US Amateur. I would much rather see him than Jim Furyk, Bill Haas, Webb Simpson, or any other veteran that has been a part of multiple Ryder Cup failures in the past. He shouldn't be in over someone like Koepka or Justin Thomas, sure. But he has the length and winning match play experience that would make him an asset. DeChambeau was also the second best US player at the last Walker Cup.

I'm sure it's a moot point unless DeChambeau wins a tournament. Love won't pick him. But I would much rather see young blood than failed veterans.

I get that he's been a very successful amateur and is getting a lot of good press from his performances in the Master's and the RBC but I'm of the opinion that the four captain's picks should be guys who have performed at a high level on the PGA Tour but just haven't broken through.  Whereas I agree some guys like Webb Simpson don't deserve to be on the squad, I think to make the Ryder Cup, you need to be more than just the latest media sensation which is how I currently view DeChambeau.

[DeadMan]

4 minutes ago, RFKFREAK said:

I get that he's been a very successful amateur and is getting a lot of good press from his performances in the Master's and the RBC but I'm of the opinion that the four captain's picks should be guys who have performed at a high level on the PGA Tour but just haven't broken through.  Whereas I agree some guys like Webb Simpson don't deserve to be on the squad, I think to make the Ryder Cup, you need to be more than just the latest media sensation which is how I currently view DeChambeau.

Does a T21 and T4 finish not qualify as a performing at a high level but not breaking through? And, I did find it. He was first in strokes gained tee to green at this event (http://www.cbssports.com/golf/eye-on-golf/25558139/grades-branden-grace-gets-first-pga-tour-win-as-rookie-dechambeau-shines). That is incredibly impressive for the first real start for him. I'm all about taking the best golfers to the Ryder Cup; if he keeps this up, he'll be in that discussion.

[RFKFREAK]

2 minutes ago, DeadMan said:

Does a T21 and T4 finish not qualify as a performing at a high level but not breaking through? And, I did find it. He was first in strokes gained tee to green at this event (http://www.cbssports.com/golf/eye-on-golf/25558139/grades-branden-grace-gets-first-pga-tour-win-as-rookie-dechambeau-shines). That is incredibly impressive for the first real start for him. I'm all about taking the best golfers to the Ryder Cup; if he keeps this up, he'll be in that discussion.

That's a big "if."

I don't discount that his performances in the Masters and RBC but that's an awfully short track record.  Should he keep it up, I don't doubt that then he'd be in the discussion but right now, I think based on what he's accomplished so far, relative to the others who might be captain's picks, I think it's premature. 

[Golfingdad]

8 minutes ago, RFKFREAK said:

That's a big "if."

I don't discount that his performances in the Masters and RBC but that's an awfully short track record.  Should he keep it up, I don't doubt that then he'd be in the discussion but right now, I think based on what he's accomplished so far, relative to the others who might be captain's picks, I think it's premature. 

Yeah, totally agree. Way, waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay, premature to talk about him on the Ryder Cup team right now.  But, sure, IF this keeps up, and he happens to just keep mowing these guys down and racking up T5's and T10's for the next 3 months, then, sure, let's talk about it then - when he's the hottest American golfer on the planet.