Arriving at Augusta National as the last person to win one of golf's majors, Bryson DeChambeau was tipped by many as a favourite to win the Masters earlier this month.
While another one of the favourites – Dustin Johnson – did eventually romp to victory, DeChambeau, the US Open champion, finished 18 shots back in tied 34th, just two-under-par for the tournament.
Considering the fearful talk of how the big-hitting American might rip through the Augusta course with his aggressive style, the weekend turned out to be a bit of a damp squib for the 27-year-old, who said he felt dizzy and numb throughout the tournament.
However, DeChambeau appeared to have problems beyond just illness at Augusta, Peter Lawrie noted on this week's Golf Weekly.
"I don't think he felt too comfortable being the favourite, either" Lawrie told Joe Molloy and Fionn Davenport on the podcast.
"I think he put an awful lot of pressure on himself and he succumbed to that pressure – and plus he was kind of found out on a golf course with actual trouble on it."
While previously crowds could help locate DeChambeau's wayward drives, he struggled looking for his tee shots at an empty Augusta National.
Unable to find his ball on the par-four third during his second round, DeChambeau was forced to retake from the tee before filing a seven for the hole.
"He certainly didn't seem himself and he didn't play half the golf that he had done in the US Open," Lawrie added.
DeChambeau's struggle was something that Paul McGinley correctly predicted on Golf Weekly prior to the tournament, and Davenport further detailed this week how his long drives spelled trouble at Augusta.
"He wasn't so concerned about making fairways [at Winged Foot] because he knew he could gouge it out of the rough with control.
"Whereas at Augusta, you find yourself in no rough but behind a tree so you are poking it out and are forced to take on shots you really shouldn't be taking on with waterfronts. Augusta is penal in its own way," Davenport explained.
"He succumbed to that pressure – and he was kind of found out by a golf course with actual trouble on it..."😬🏌️♂️@pelawrie gives his take on Bryson DeChambeau's difficult outing at the Masters🏌🏻♂️⛳️ | @NOWTVIreland @GolfWeeklyOTB pic.twitter.com/VxH48pngYK
— Off The Ball (@offtheball) November 26, 2020
With the Masters returning at its normal time of April next year, DeChambeau doesn't have long to wait to take on Augusta National again.
Fast swinging DeChambeau
However, Lawrie concluded the discussion by highlighting his belief that DeChambeau's problems will always be exacerbated by his fast swing.
"Swinging at that speed when it goes minutely wrong, it is just disastrous," the former Spanish Open winner argued.
"I really think there is a limit to the speed you can put on a golf club and get it square.
"Being a Tour pro and at the height of your game, 99.9 percent of the time it has to be square. So swinging at that speed, I think he has to rein it back a little bit to be successful going forward.
"I don't think he can keep on pushing the outer limits of how far he is hitting it, to be successful."
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