The 126th U.S. Open kicks off Thursday at legendary Shinnecock Hills Golf Club on Long Island and the storylines heading into the third major championship of the year are plentiful. Leading the way is the No. 1 player in the world, Scottie Scheffler, getting his first shot at becoming just the seventh player in history to win the career grand slam.
But right behind Scheffler’s attempt at history sits one of the biggest names in professional golf who is not only looking to win the U.S. Open for the third time in his career, but also a man whose professional life is a little bit upside down at the moment as he faces a future in a league that is fighting for its life.
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We’re talking, of course, about Bryson DeChambeau. The King of YouTube Golf, who has figured out many weird ways to go viral, now needs to find a way to stay relevant between the ropes, while carrying the hopes of LIV Golf on his shoulders.
DeChambeau has four dates circled on his calendar each year where he gets to face the best golfers in the world on the biggest stages of the sport. So far this year he’s been a massive failure in those events, missing the cut at the Masters and the PGA Championship. A third missed cut at Shinnecock is something he not only needs to avoid for himself, but also for the reputation of all the players who call LIV Golf home. And it means more this week than ever as the Saudi-funded (for now) league is on life support.
DeChambeau, who won the 2020 U.S. Open at Winged Foot by six strokes and then edged out Rory McIlroy by one stroke at the thrilling 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst, has spent recent weeks trying to woo big-money investors into funding LIV Golf after the Saudis shut off their money stream and walk away from the league. This week, DeChambeau can step away from the whiteboards in the conference rooms and use his golf clubs to try to entice the nameless people in suits who might actually reach for their checkbooks to save LIV Golf.
DeChambeau lit up Pinehurst during the final round in 2024. His bunker shot on the 72nd hole instantly became iconic and had fans all over the world wanting to see him do more incredible things on the golf course. He was the biggest of stars and took advantage of it by growing his personal brand across many different platforms.
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Now, however, he has become an afterthought after crashing out at Augusta National and Aronimink. This week he simply can’t afford to be heading to the airport on Friday night after another missed cut. He needs to thrust himself back into the middle of the conversation over the weekend and then he has to contend on Sunday. He has to show everyone he’s more than just a guy who can break a local golf course’s record in a YouTube video that will have over a million views just hours after its posted. He has to show everyone once again he’s more than just a guy who can hit a golf ball over his house and into a hole in his backyard.
He has to step up and be one of the best golfers in the world and show everyone that he actually cares about being one of the best golfers in the world.
If DeChambeau fails to do that, he’s in trouble. And so is LIV Golf, which is already hanging on by a string.
