The Open Championship is often associated with damp conditions, cloudy skies, rolling hills, coastal views, and — of course — long grass.
The Dunluce Links at Royal Portrush is covered in deep, grown-out fescue, or as it’s more informally known, the “thick stuff.” It is one of the signature challenges that competitors must face and overcome if they want to hoist the Claret Jug.
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Just keep it in the fairway, right?
It’s not that simple, and one of the world’s best ball strikers learned that the hard way during Thursday’s opening round.
Bryson DeChambeau’s tee shot on the par-4 fourth hole found the rough to the left of the fairway, but his second shot doomed him even more, as he discovered his ball buried in the long grass about 40 yards in front of the green. A catastrophic side-hill lie didn’t help matters, either, and DeChambeau proceeded to completely whiff on his fourth shot.
He eventually got it up-and-down for a double bogey after needing two attempts to get out of the fescue.
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DeChambeau, a member of LIV Golf and a two-time U.S. Open champion, was 2 over through six holes just before noon ET on Thursday, six shots behind a four-way tie for the lead.
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This article originally appeared on Golfweek: British Open 2025: Bryson DeChambeau whiffs on shot from long grass