DeChambeau Replaces Driver Head to Win US Open
June 17, 2024
Minutes before beginning his final round at the 124th U.S. Open, Bryson DeChambeau was acknowledging fans at the driving range. It was noticeable that the winner of the 120th U.S. Open at Winged Foot was uncharacteristically relaxed. After all, the golf pro’s week in North Carolina had been going good, and now it was about focusing on winning a second major championship.
The first tee at Pinehurst #2 filled to capacity with cheering fans, while DeChambeau warmed up on the range under the scrutinizing eye of caddy Gregory Bodine. As one of the most flamboyant stars in the game, the long ball hitter has only had a short list of caddies on his bag during his career, but has always considered his bagman to be an integral part of his on-course strategies.
Bodine played college golf at Biola University before establishing the Evergreen Golf Club in Seattle with former NFL wide receiver Jermaine Kearse. Still an avid golfer, Bodine was on the bag for Tony Finau’s PGA Tour win before joining DeChambeau in 2023. The duo’s standout moment on the LIV Golf League tour came at Greenbrier where DeChambeau carded a record-breaking 58 on Sunday to win the Invitational by six strokes.
Near disaster amidst his controversy...
After DeChambeau claimed his first victory at the John Deere Classic in 2017, the overly analytical golfer would go on to win eight PGA Tour events, including his only major at Wing Foot. Well known for constantly overthinking everything about his game, the rising star joined the Saudi-backed LIV Golf. But the transition after his controversial “flip-flop” decision hadn’t gone well for DeChambeau before his victory at West Virginia's legendary Greenbrier Golf Club.
While working on speed training with then caddie and coach Brian Zeigler, DeChambeau suffered a critical hand injury in a bizarre accident playing table tennis. A broken hamate bone proved serious enough to require surgery on his left hand, something that’s never good news for a golfer. But, DeChambeau remained focused on his goals, ignored the criticism over playing golf with the Saudis, and has since reignited his following of fans.
DeChambeau Adds Accuracy to His Distance
Always looking for that special ingredient to give him an on-course advantage, the revolutionary golfer spent some time having fun with champion long ball hitters on the World Long Drive Tour. That led DeChambeau to put a Krank Formula Fire driver in his bag for the LIV Greenbrier Invitational, and the rest is history. Without doubt, the partnership has become one of the best pairings in the world of golf during the 2024 season.
In September of last year before shifting his focus to the Majors, DeChambeau shot a six-under 28 on the back nine to win the LIV Golf-Chicago event just a month after his historic win at Greenbrier. “Hitting a driver with maximum energy transfer means you can hit the ball straighter as well as longer,” says Lance Reader, founder of Krank Golf. “We don’t build irons - we don’t build wedges - and we don’t build putters. We custom-machine driver heads for distance and accuracy.”
Following his equipment shift, DeChambeau has been playing spectacular rounds of golf at majors. In April at Augusta National, he finished tied for sixth at the Masters. A month later, he missed out on taking home the Wanamaker Trophy after losing the PGA Championship to Xander Schauffele by one stroke. As one of the fan favorites, now he had a three-stroke lead over Rory McIlroy, Patrick Cantlay and Matthieu Pavon entering the final round of play.
An equipment emergency on the range...
Every grandstand and clubhouse balcony at Pinehurst was packed with people Sunday morning. Standing shoulder-to-shoulder fans watched as DeChambeau warmed up. Dechambeau would elicit cheers with every clank of his Krank Formula Fire driver. That’s when the seasoned veteran noticed something amiss. Always prepared for an equipment emergency, he took out a level and discovered his previous rounds of smashing the cover off the ball had flattened the curve of the clubface.
But with minutes left before his tee time for the final round of the U.S. Open, DeChambeau calmly removed the damaged head and replaced it. It’s just the price he has to bear for delivering a ball speed that’s 20+ mph above the PGA average. With the clock ticking down, he found the backup clubhead that he liked, installed it with ease, and handed his Formula Fire driver to Bodine. It's just that easy. Then both men walked to the first tee without a hint of doubt about the brand new Krank head.
DeChambeau Wins a Second U.S. Open
As typical of U.S. Open courses, the lowest score on the leaderboard doesn’t change that much, since the daily setup becomes more challenging as the week goes on. In 2024, the Pinehurst course was re-grassed with Champion ultra-dwarf bermudagrass that replaced the heat-sensitive bentgrass greens. With lots of native wiregrass in the landing areas to penalize golfers who missed the fairway, the legendary Donald Ross layout awaited the final twosome of DeChambeau and Frenchman Matthieu Pavon.
Unlike his final round at Wing Foot in 2020 where he entered the day two strokes off the lead, DeChambeau stepped up to the first tee with a three-stroke lead at 7-under par. With only seven other players starting the day with red numerals on the leaderboard, the frenzied Open fans felt his group was the one to follow. Realizing this, DeChambeau put golf’s turf war behind and played to the crowd like the natural showman he is, and all the way to his final fist-pump after a par on the 18th green.
One group ahead, veteran warrior Rory McIlroy had turned a three-stroke deficit into a two-shot lead with only four holes to play. McIlroy was desperately trying to end a ten-year drought since his last major championship. DeChambeau ignored watching the scoreboard and allowed the cheers and jeers from the fans to guide him home. After a 325-yard three wood resulted in a two-putt birdie, the game was on. When Rory missed a three-foot putt on 18, Bodine would put the right club in DeChambeau’s hands to claim his second U.S. Open win.
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The scene at the trophy presentation was unlike any other. The newly crowned U.S. Open champion credited the cheering crowd, and in his acceptance speech, said he wanted everyone to touch the trophy they had been such a part of all week. DeChambeau later made good on his statement, as he walked through the crowd with trophy in hand.
Krank Golf has 26 Professional Long Drive World Championships behind the clubhead technology of Bryson DeChambeau’s 6-degree Krank Formula Fire driver and fairway woods. If you are tired of giving away crucial yardage, Krank Formula Fire drivers are built to match your swing, so you too can hit the ball farther and straighter.
