'Not particularly fond of him': McIlroy blasts American over Open drama

Rory McIlroy did not hold back his criticism of American golfer Bryson DeChambeau, stating he is "not particularly fond" of him following DeChambeau's controversial actions on the second day of The Open. DeChambeau's lengthy dispute with rules officials over a two-shot penalty for inadvertently improving his swing path led to significant delays in releasing the tee times for the third round.

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I won't pretend to be up here and defend Bryson. I'm not particularly fond of him. I think a lot of it is performative. I think a lot of it's for attention.

"I won't pretend to be up here and defend Bryson," McIlroy told reporters after his third-round 1-under 69. "I think a lot of it is performative. I think a lot of it's for attention." McIlroy felt DeChambeau held "the tournament hostage," causing players, volunteers, and staff to wait for his departure. He added, "I didn't feel like it was a great look."

McIlroy, who watched the incident unfold with other players, believed DeChambeau's actions "didn't seem right." He agreed with the penalty, stating, "I think there's no doubt that he improved the line of his backswing... I think the two-shot penalty was justified, for sure." McIlroy suggested that whether the action was careless or intentional, the outcome was the same, though he hoped it was careless.

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

Other golfers offered more measured reactions. English player Marco Penge commented on X about his frustration with the late tee times, stating he would be very careful about his stance and actions to avoid improving his lie. "Yeah, I would never want anyone to think I was doing that. That's how I would deal with it," Penge said.

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I think there's no doubt that he improved the line of his backswing... I think the two-shot penalty was justified, for sure.

Former Open champion Xander Schauffele suggested DeChambeau could have been given "the benefit of the doubt." He acknowledged DeChambeau's claim of not acting intentionally and expressed sympathy for the penalty, especially given DeChambeau's strong performance. "He was playing incredibly well and obviously he's still playing incredibly well," Schauffele noted, adding that DeChambeau "is obviously going to have something to prove these next two days." DeChambeau is currently tied for sixth place, four shots behind the leader.

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He said he didn't do it intentionally and it's unfortunate that he got penalised because he was playing incredibly well and obviously he's still playing incredibly well.