The 154th Open: Speaking to the media at the Majors should be mandatory for all golfers
- Matt Hooper
- 5 hours ago
- 3 min read
Friday at Royal Birkdale was one of the great days of Major Championship golf this year, in fact of any year. The weather was glorious, the links burnt to a crisp, the fans were raucous but fun and fair and the golf was absolutely spectacular. Heading into the weekend we have several different storylines which are set to be compelling. But sadly a major moment has threatened to overshadow this entire major championship.
Bryson DeChambeau played a beautiful round of golf on Friday, moving into contention to add the Claret Jug to his two US Open trophies, but an 'unfortunate' incident on the fifth hole resulted him in receiving a two-stroke penalty after the round, following a long discussion with R&A officials, both on the course and in the recorders hut. Remarkably Bryson was seen apparently saying that if he was penalised for the incident then he would not play in Saturday's third round. The R&A confirmed that DeChambeau had been assessed a two-stroke penalty for "inadvertently" improving his lie on the fifth hole, resulting in a score of 7 on the hole and meaning he now would sign for a score of 68 rather than 66 and fall from the final group on Saturday to the third to last group, 3 shots behind leader Lucas Herbert.
Even more remarkably Bryson, who went to the range to hit balls at 2140 BST on Friday night, has yet to confirm whether he will play in the third round, with reports suggesting he will decide on Saturday morning. Incredibly Bryson has not spoken to the accredited media at all during the 154th Open, aside from brief comments after his first round on Thursday, when he spoke to George Harper Jr. of the R&A.
The absence of comment, or answers from Bryson to the accredited media has created a vacuum, and in a vacuum speculation takes hold like a wildfire does on burnt, crispy ground.
Many of my colleagues my disagree, but I believe that all golfers who enter Major Championships should be mandated to speak to the media if they are requested to do so. They may disagree because it is part of being a journalist to build a relationship with a player over time and earning their trust, and mandating them to speak to the media will result in closed answers with very little depth from the player. I get that outside the Majors, but the Majors are the most viewed, best attended and most important events in our game, along with the Ryder Cup, and they are the events with the biggest number of accredited media, by far.
The R&A does not publish numbers of accredited media, but the Ryder Cup accredits more than 1,000 members of the media including journalists, photographers and broadcast crews, so that gives you some insight into how big the biggest events in golf are. By contrast the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship grants accreditation to between 80 and 150 members of the media each October for what is considered a premier event on the DP World Tour.
The media promote this sport to its biggest audience, still far and away bigger than any social media channel, and it is not just right for them to tell the positive stories, and celebrate the great moments of a golfer. Bryson could have added depth to this evening's story by telling the world his side of the story. So for the biggest events in the sport it is firmly my belief that all players who enter these events they should not have a choice in the matter. They should be mandated to speak to the media when requested.
Next week he may be protected by LIV Golf and be allowed to sit out the pre-tournament media events, and I would not be surprised if he speaks about this incident on his YouTube channel, getting a massive audience for his own content. What is certain that this story will run and run, and the controversy and speculation will grow until we hear from Bryson, and if Bryson does go on to win The Open then he will have to speak to the media. But will he do so? Is he going to empty chair the media on Sunday evening at Royal Birkdale?
SHANK, by Matt Hooper
Matt Hooper is an Associate Member of the Sports Journalists Association