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AUSTIN, Texas — If Bryson DeChambeau was looking to quietly slide back into PGA Tour action nearly two months since he’d last played a round of competitive golf, he certainly found the perfect stage for it on Wednesday.
Due to a loaded field and a late start time, the gallery following the 2020 U.S. Open champ was paltry by normal standards, with only a few wisecracks to be heard as he walked the grounds at Austin Country Club.
And although Brian Zeigler, DeChambeau’s caddie, seemed to be seeking attention by sporting a pair of circa-1970 striped tube socks pulled high up his leg, in hipster-friendly Austin, even that only drew a handful of stares.
But most accommodating on Wednesday was his opponent, 49-year-old journeyman Richard Bland, who had every chance to hop on a rusty and erratic DeChambeau, but failed to ever manage a lead before eventually earning a draw in the opening match of pool play at the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.
Having last played at the Farmers Insurance Open in late January, DeChambeau told Golf Channel on Tuesday that he had no expectations heading into the week, one in which he finally returned from a hand injury. The 8-time PGA Tour champ said he hadn’t started working with his driver until last weekend, and added that he might need surgery on the hand, a problem he compounded playing ping-pong prior to the Saudi International.
WGC-Match Play: Yardage book | PGA Tour Live on ESPN+
Bryson DeChambeau putts on #9 during the first round of the World Golf Championships-Dell Technologies Match Play golf tournament. Mandatory Credit: Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports
“We didn’t play our best, obviously, but just a bit rusty,” DeChambeau said. “Obviously hit some wayward shots, just concerned — just more or less cautious, very cautious. There were some pretty good wayward shots because of that, and that probably cost me quite a bit, and then I three-putted a few times. I haven’t practiced the way I should have on the putting…
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Source : yahoo
