Rory McIlroy rips Bryson DeChambeau after penalty, ‘performative’ actions at The Open Championship: ‘I’m not particularly fond of him’

Rory McIlroy was not having Bryson DeChambeau’s antics at The Open Championship.

McIlroy absolutely ripped DeChambeau after his third round at Royal Birkdale on Saturday, and called out the LIV Golf star for taking the British Open “hostage” after what happened with his two-shot penalty the night before.

“I won’t pretend to be up here and defend Bryson,” McIlroy said. “I’m not particularly fond of him. I think a lot of it’s performative. I think a lot of it’s for attention.

“To hold the tournament hostage like that, and to have all of us, volunteers, players, everyone waiting on him to depart, I didn’t feel like it was a great look.”

After finishing his second round and walking off the green just a shot of the lead, officials approached DeChambeau about a possible rules violation. That led to a long, chaotic scene at Royal Birkdale. DeChambeau was seen in an animated and heated discussion with rules officials out at the spot of the infraction, called them “crooks” and even reportedly threatened not withdraw from the tournament after they hit him with a two-shot penalty. 

DeChambeau then went to the range and hit balls as darkness fell over the course, and was reportedly humming, singing and handing out snacks. He didn’t speak about the incident with reporters on site, and eventually confirmed late on Friday that he’d remain in the tournament. The penalty brought him three back of the lead at the midway point.

The moment absolutely overshadowed what was a great start for DeChambeau. He entered the week having failed to make a cut or post a round under par at a major championship in 2026. 

While some may view it as controversial, McIlroy had no issue with the penalty. He said he was watching DeChambeau’s round live in the lounge when it happened, and thought it was “pretty obvious” why he was called in by rules officials. 

“I think there’s no doubt that he improved the line of his backswing,” McIlroy said. “Again, it’s like, whether it was careless or whether it was intentional, I don’t think it matters. Hopefully it was careless, but I think the two-shot penalty was justified for sure.”

McIlroy posted a 1-under 69 on Saturday to get to 2-under on the week. He was still six shots off the lead when he hit the clubhouse, thanks in part to a 62 that Ryan Fox posted in the early wave. That marked the third 62 of the tournament. If McIlroy is going to make a run on Sunday, he’ll need to have about a perfect outing and get some help from the rest of the field. 

But as for DeChambeau, McIlroy clearly didn’t like how things played out on Friday night.

“Again, I’m not in his mind,” McIlroy said when asked if DeChambeau knew what he was doing. “But it didn’t look good.”