Was Bryson DeChambeau Behind Rory McIlroy’s Transformation? LIV Golf Pro Sheds the ‘Hard-Hitting’ Truth

It was the 2020 U.S. Open at the Winged Foot West course. Bryson DeChambeau managed a 6-under 274 and broke par, the third one to ever do so in the last six editions of the major at the course. It was all thanks to his unique style of golf, which aimed to hit the ball as far as he could. The result? The ‘Scientist’ managed to clinch his first major victory at the event. But there was one thing he never anticipated happening: the likes of Rory McIlroy trying to keep up with the American Pro.

A post was shared by the official Instagram handle of Majesticks GC hours ago. It showcased the co-captain of the team, Ian Poulter, in an interview with the team principal of the LIV Golf squad, James Dunkley. The latter was spotted posing a query to the English golfer about whether he’s ever got sucked into certain golf courses trying to play a game that’s not his.

LIV Golf Pro recounts Rory McIlroy trying to emulate Bryson DeChambeau

The 49-year-old was quick to answer the question that he was asked as he positively responded, “Yeah. Always, always.” He, then, all too swiftly brought in McIlroy and recollected the time when the Northern Irishman was inspired by DeChambeau’s hard-hitting style: “I mean look what it did to Rory when… Bryson beefed up and it, it sent Rory in the gym to attempt to try and hit it harder and harder and harder.”

Poulter did, however, add how the now-35-year-old has “completely backed off of that” along with DeChambeau. The LIV golfer said, “He realized that that wasn’t a game that he needed. He already hits the ball long enough,” while alluding to the Crushers GC captain’s driving distance. The skipper, interestingly, boasted an average distance of  330.5 with 62.50% accuracy at the recently ended 2024 PGA Championship, topping the field once again ahead of McIlroy.

The 4-time major champ, meanwhile, learned it the hard way when he failed to defend his title at the 2021 PLAYERS Championship that followed. When asked about his failure to do so, McIlroy confessed that trying to hit it harder was the problem: “Probably the swing issues and where it all stems from, probably like October last year, doing a little bit of speed training, started getting sucked into that stuff, swing got flat, long, and too rotational… Obviously, I added some speed and am hitting the ball longer, but what that did to my swing as a whole probably wasn’t a good thing, so I’m sort of fighting to get back out of that. That’s what I’m frustrated with.” The Northern Irishman had taken time out from the regular practice to train his speed after watching DeChambeau.

While the golfer did realize that such a hard-hitting regiment wasn’t the apt one for him, he didn’t shy away from complimenting the 2020 U.S. Open champ for his style of gameplay. McIlroy even went ahead to admit how he was inspired by the ‘hard-hitting’ athlete to change his own style to gain more speed.

McIlroy admits his awe of DeChambeau

“I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t anything to do with what Bryson did at the U.S. Open,” confessed the 4-time major champ after missing the cut at the 2021 PLAYERS Championship with a score of 10-ver par. Adding on to the praise, he said, “I think a lot of people saw that and were like, whoa, if this is the way they’re going to set golf courses up in the future, it helps. It really helps,” while hinting at the ‘Scientist’s’ gameplay.

Ahead of the 2021 RBC Heritage, Rory McIlroy had even gone ahead to dub his distance gain as nothing short of “crazy.” The athlete, while dishing out another series of praises for DeChambeau, said, “He’s big. He’s sort of gone down a path. He’s got a conviction, and he’s following it. That’s what he’s done. He’s always thought outside the box and thought a little differently to most people. He’s really put his mind at wanting to get longer, and he’s definitely done that.” 

After his unfortunate experience at the 2021 PLAYERS Championship, the 26-time PGA Tour champ did go ahead and correct his swing and style. The pro was able to rake in four more victories in the men’s circuit from the 2022 CJ Cup till the recently ended 2024 Wells Fargo Championship. It appears he really has found his style!