MAMARONECK, N.Y. – Bryson DeChambeau’s ride-or-die approach off the tee at Winged Foot worked, sort of.
DeChambeau had an eventful opening round at the U.S. Open with two late bogeys dropping him to 1 under par and tied for 14th place, but he said he was still comfortable with his decision to be aggressive off the tee despite narrow fairways and thick rough.
“I feel good right now with my driver, as long as I miss the driver in the right spots,” said DeChambeau, who hit just half his fairways (7 of 14) on Day 1.
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A missed fairway at the 17th hole led to a late bogey, but otherwise, DeChambeau was able to mitigate his misses off the tee with solid iron play and some clutch putts.
DeChambeau did concede that Friday’s forecast of increasing winds and colder temperatures might make him adjust his strategy, but he said he anticipates hitting the same number of drivers on Friday – depending on the changing wind direction.
He also said he might add another driving hole to his blueprint at the par-4 11th hole, which at 373 yards would be within the long-hitting 27-year-old’s range if the wind shifts out of the north as forecast.