Golf Fans React to Bryson DeChambeau’s Olympic Team Snub

Golf fans are reacting to Bryson DeChambeau’s exclusion from the U.S. Olympic team, and a lot of people are confused, shocked, and unhappy with the decision.

DeChambeau did not qualify for the team due to his position on the Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR), which attempts to find the best golfers in the world and rank them numerically based on performance.

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However, the OWGR has a flaw: It does not include LIV Golf, as the tour does not technically qualify for points due to its unorthodox structure.

Nevertheless, the players on LIV Golf are still able to gain OWGR points, but it comes at the Majors. DeChambeau was ranked outside of the Top 100 for some time, but this year's performance at the Majors has bumped him up to the Top 10.

The problem is that DeChambeau is not one of the Top four Americans on the OWGR, which has kept him out of the running to play at the Olympics.

But some recency bias and the easy comparison between DeChambeau and Wyndham Clark, who many believe is the player who should have been left off the team, show that the right decision was more than likely not the one that was made.

Comparison

So far this year, Clark and DeChambeau have competed in three of the same tournaments, all Major Championships.

Here's how they stack up:

• Bryson DeChambeau vs. Wyndham Clark
  • The Masters - T6 vs. Missed Cut
  • PGA Championship - 2nd vs. Missed Cut
  • U.S. Open - 1st vs. T56

In their respective Tours, this is how they've performed:

• DeChambeau
  • LIV Mayakoba - 26th, +1
  • LIV Las Vegas - 11th, -7
  • LIV Jeddah - 4th, -12
  • LIV Hong Kong - 7th, -11
  • LIV Miami - 7th, -7
  • LIV Adelaide - 28th, -10
  • LIV Singapore - 28th, -5
  • LIV Houston - 22nd, -5
• Clark
  • Sentry TOC - T29, -19
  • American Express - T39, -17
  • AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am - 1st, -17
  • WM Phoenix Open - T41, -6
  • The Genesis Invitational - MC, +2
  • Arnold Palmer Invitational - 2nd, -10
  • THE PLAYERS - T2, -19
  • Texas Children Houston Open - T31, -4
  • RBC Heritage - T3, -15
  • Wells Fargo Championship - T47, +7
  • Memorial Tournament - MC +5

There is certainly and undoubtedly an argument for both players. DeChambeau, however, is unable to gain OWGR points through LIV Golf, which makes his performances weigh less. In the Majors, when people truly believe it counts, there is no comparison between the two players.

What Others Think

Plenty of people, including myself, have an opinion on the choice.

Personally, I believe DeChambeau is more deserving of the spot due to his performance comparatively in Major Championships.

Clark has had a good year on the PGA Tour, especially with a 2nd at THE Players, a win at Pebble Beach, and a 2nd at the API. However, his recent performances are not doing him any favors. Missed cuts at the PGA Championship and the Memorial and a subpar showing at the U.S. Open do not do him any favors.

Others think it's a no-brainer:

The Team we need 🇺🇸🥇 pic.twitter.com/jY1JqmuY0s

— Jordan Rice (@TriStar423) June 18, 2024

Use me as a “Bryson should be there” button

— greg (@greg16676935420) June 18, 2024

Trying to see if this a parody account with Clark suiting up

— 💯JD 🔥 (@jtd_824) June 18, 2024

Clark over Bryson?! What a joke.
Clark has MC’s in 2 of 3 majors this year…

— Kristofer Castellanos (@Kriscaste1125) June 18, 2024

It's obvious there are still some serious flaws in the OWGR, and since we can't blame a team captain for keeping DeChambeau out when he obviously should have been on the Ryder Cup team last year, we can look at the points-based system for this mistake.

Does Clark deserve to be on the team? Maybe so, especially considering he is still in the Top 10 of the OWGR a year after winning the U.S. Open in 2023. Does he deserve to be on the team more than DeChambeau?

In my opinion, no.

Cover Image via WSAV-TV