Clear-cut to punish DeChambeau – R&A boss

July 18, 2026 No Comments

‘Clear-cut decision’ to punish DeChambeau – R&A bossImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, DeChambeau is now three shots behind Australian leader Lucas Herbert before his third round at BirkdaleByJonathan Jurejko

BBC Sport golf reporter at Royal Birkdale

32 minutes ago

The two-shot penalty given to Bryson DeChambeau at the Open Championship was a “clear-cut decision”, according to R&A chief executive Mark Darbon.

The American superstar’s hopes of lifting the Claret Jug were hampered when he was penalised in dramatic scenes after Friday’s second round at Royal Birkdale.

Darbon added he had not been contacted by President Donald Trump, who is close to DeChambeau and controversially asked football governing body Fifa to review United States striker Folarin Balogun’s one-match suspension at the World Cup earlier this month.

“It was an unfortunate decision but really clear-cut from a rules perspective,” Darbon told BBC Radio 5 Live.

Asked in a light-hearted exchange with BBC golf correspondent Iain Carter if he had been called by Trump, he reported: “No. I have not received a call from President Trump and we will see what happens from here.”

Two-shot penalty ‘fires up’ Open contender DeChambeau

DeChambeau, 32, looked to have lifted himself to one shot off the lead on Friday – finishing seven under par with a four-under 66 – but was punished after being deemed to have trampled on long grass close to his ball on the fifth hole.

There had been some doubt about whether DeChambeau would continue playing at the tournament, but later on Friday he reported the decision would “fire” him up for the weekend.

The two-time US Open champion, who is now three shots behind Australian overnight leader Lucas Herbert, tees off at 15:30 BST on Saturday.

Darbon would not be drawn on whether DeChambeau had threatened on Friday night to pull out of the weekend.

“It’s fair to say there was some emotion around that and we will keep some of the aspects of that discussion private,” Darbon reported.

He added: “There was some emotion but I empathise with that. Bryson has played a great round of golf, is in contention at a major championship, he wants to win the golf’s original major.

“We were focused on the ruling and making a fair assessment.”