Earlier this week, Nick Faldo didn’t hold back in his criticism of Bryson DeChambeau. Appearing on Sky Sports, the three-time Open champion was scathing of DeChambeau’s ability to dissect a golf course.
“I’ll say it to his face,” Faldo said. “He has zero clue of strategy. He said last year, ‘I’m going to go out and attack the links’, well I’ve never attacked a links, you thread it, don’t you.”
Sir Nick Faldo certainly not holding back ahead of The Open 😳 pic.twitter.com/xkPnyGaJuq
— Sky Sports Golf (@SkySportsGolf) July 14, 2026
Well, it appears that there is no necessity for Faldo to say it to the two-time U.S. Open winner’s face, as evidenced by Bryson’s post-round interview with an R&A staffer after refusing to talk to print or television reporters.
The big-hitting Texan had just shot a three-under 67 which left him comfortably inside the top 10, and it wasn’t just what he said, but the way he said it that left viewers in little doubt that he was well aware of what Faldo had said.
“I think you’ve got to be a lot more strategic out on the golf course,” he said. “I feel like I did a really good job today of being incredibly strategic and focused super hard on placing it in the right places.
“Besides 18, I placed the ball in some good areas. I just need to hit more fairways. Other than that, I feel like my strategy was nice today.”
Those two sentences took less than 17 seconds, and the words ‘strategic’ and ‘strategy’ appeared three times, and he heavily emphasised each syllable in ‘strategic’, looking directly at the interviewer on each occasion.
On Tuesday, Nick Faldo said Bryson DeChambeau had “zero clue of strategy.”
Today, in his post-round interview, Bryson said he “did a really good job today of being incredibly strategic.” pic.twitter.com/RIjb7xyKQ3
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) July 16, 2026
Petty? Humorous? Evidence that DeChambeau cares too much what others say and think? Perhaps it’s all three, but you can make up your own mind.
Either way, neither Faldo nor Bryson are known for rowing back on a stance, so there’s likely more to come over the next 18, 36, or even 54 holes.
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