Connor Harrington

Long LIV Golf.

"But it was clear, in the aftermath, how those kinds of antics become the pheromones that attract the dumbest possible acolytes, the newly minted golf fan who fell in love with the sport during COVID and is now happy to sully it for others with their ignorance or lack of interest in its history. You could see it mushroom in real time, the army of people eager to share loud opinions about rules they barely understand, a cadre of sycophants insisting that DeChambeau was being persecuted for his politics, or his association with LIV Golf. Bryson cannot seem to resist the allure of their attention, and a lot of his antics do feel like a performance specifically for them. "That’s fine when it’s confined to his YouTube channel. He loves the idea that millions of kids might get interested in golf by watching his Break 50 series, which is entertaining and interesting. But where does the internet personality end and the golfer begin? Every year, there are a handful of kids at the Drive, Chip and Putt who arrive in Augusta saying they were inspired by Rory McIlroy’s swing. A dozen years from now, will we see a generation of kids inspired by DeChambeau to throw tantrums over a two-stroke penalty? Will they march into scoring and demand their scorecard a day after their round so they can auction it on TikTok? "I don’t like gatekeeping when it comes to sports. There is a reason that Caddyshack is one of the most revered sports movies of all time — who doesn’t love to see the snobs and the wealthy country club elite knocked off their pedestal? But DeChambeau’s recent habit of turning himself into a perpetual victim is detracting from what a dynamic golfer he is. Even Danny Noonan needed Maggie to snap him out of feeling sorry for himself so he could focus on what matters. Reportedly asking the R&A if the President of the United States can join a rules dispute at the Open means you have become Spaulding Smails, not Ty Webb." - @KVanValkenburg in today's newsletter (Photo Courtesy: Stuart Kerr/R&A)