Do You Feel That? It's The Tide Turning Against Bryson Dechambeau, Who Is About To Have Everyone Hating Him Again
Remember when we all hated Bryson Dechambeau? With his same-length golf shafts, his obsession with gear, his use of a geometry compass to read greens, and his feud with Brooks that framed him as the nerdy boyscout against Brooks' devil-may-care bad boy persona, Bryson used to poll poorly in the popularity contest that is professional golf.
Of course, winning solves everything. And once he won his first U.S. Open at Winged Foot, thanks in large part to a gigantic body transformation that saw him sucking down protein shakes and learning to hit drives like some sort of redneck powerlifter, people embraced him.
From there, the wins started piling up. He won the U.S. Open again this year at Pinehurst; he shot a scintillating 58 at the Greenbriar; he came up JUST short at the PGA and acquitted himself with tremendous class as he shook winner Xander Schauffele's hand. He's been everywhere, doing everything, and doing it all the right way.
On the digital side, Bryson has been pumping out YouTube videos and crossing over from one of the top winners in professional golf to dominating YouTube golf. All these years, people wondered if some of the best golfers on YouTube (Bryan Bros, some of the GoodGood lads) could compete on the PGA Tour. We never really asked ourselves whether a PGA Tour pro (or in this case, LIV pro) could garner the click-through and retention rates of a top YouTube golf personality.
Bryson managed to do it. He's got some super viral videos on YouTube and has built his channel into one of the powerhouse golf channels on YouTube. From his round with Trump:
To his break 50 series from the red tees, the guy does numbers.
But as Louis CK once said, the mountaintop is a place you visit; not a place you stay. And I might be early on this call, but I can absolutely smell the winds of favor shifting ever so slightly against Bryson.
It starts with Dave saying on the Unnamed Show that Bryson called Dave about the Jersey Jerry/Mr. Beast idea but then "went dark" on him:
Then you have this recent challenge he's taken on, where he's trying to hit an ace over his home:
Let's be honest: this is the humblebrag of all humblebrags. It's just a way for Bryson to show off that he lives in a fucking gigantic, all-glass palace. We get it dude: you took the Saudis blood money and bought yourself the world's largest aquarium to live in. Next up, why don't you try to hit a flop shot over the five models you're currently banging. Or maybe make a putt with your 12-inch penis, ha! The kids will love that.
It's not hate yet. But I know the rhythms of the internet, and I can sense a hate-storm coming. There's a slight shift in the atmospheric pressure and the skies are starting to darken ever so slightly over Bryson Dechambeau's kingdom. The birds are flying inland and a strange quiet has settled in the streets. Personally, I like Bryson and I hope I'm wrong. But it sure feels like he should start to batten down the hatches. Because if he doesn't, that overexposure will leave him out to be pecked dry by all the vultures that are about to swoop in for their pound of flesh.