The Progress of the Bryson DeChambeau vs Brooks Koepka feud: How It Began in 2019 and Turned into “The Match”
Golf’s most famous feud of the past few years will take center stage in the fifth edition of “The Match” on Friday, November 26.
But, how does Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka’s feud play out? Their feud for each other started in January 2019 and their feud has flared up ever since. Even if fans think the feud is over after the 2021 Ryder Cup, “The Match” is making the feud return to full force.
Here’s what you need to know about the DeChambeau-Koepka feud, including a detailed schedule of major events that took place between the two golfers.
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Timeline of Hatred by Bryson DeChambeau & Brooks Koepka
January 2019 – Slow Play
Although the beginning of their “feud” has not officially broken out, the comments Koepka made about DeChmabeau during the 2019 Dubai Desert Classic are considered the first time either of them has spoken about each other publicly.
DeChambeau at the time was known for his slower style of play as he was very methodical with each shot he took. Koepka commented on “slow play” in general after the tournament, and many believe he was not subtle when referring to DeChambeau with the “long hitter” reference.
“I just don’t understand how it takes one minute 20 seconds, one minute 15 to hit a golf ball; it’s not that hard,” said Koepka, via ESPN. “It’s always between two clubs. There’s the short hit, there’s the long pass. It really drives me crazy, especially when it’s a long hitter because you know you’ve got two other guys or at least someone hit before you, so you can do all your calculations, you should have your numbers.”
Koepka’s comments sparked a debate in the golf world about slow play, which in turn left DeChambeau on the defensive. At the time, this was DeChambeau’s response to the criticism he received indirectly from many different golfers, not just Koepka.
“When you start attacking people personally on Twitter, it’s like, come on, man,” DeChambeau said. “Let’s drink some more, I was about to say something else, but let’s have a few more balls and tell me straight about it.”
August 2019 – Caddy Fight
Months after the “play slow” debate, DeChambeau is said to have approached Koepka’s caddie before an event and told the caddie to tell Koepka to say his remarks “in his face.”
He was standing on the putting green with Koepka’s picker when Bryson DeChambeau angrily walked up to him and told him to tell his boss to make any comments about playing slow “in my face” . Brooks arrived shortly after, received the message, and joined the chat with the scientist.
– Eamon Lynch (@eamonlynch) August 11, 2019
Koepka finds it ironic that DeChambeau doesn’t actually confront him head-on. Koepka also spoke to the media about the situation afterward.
“It’s not just him. I know he feels alone, especially when I’m talking about it,” Koepka said. “But like I told him, I mentioned his name once, and that was it. There are a lot of guys here that make it a problem, and obviously he’s probably the one. The best player is relatively slow right now, he’ll be on TV a lot more, so you’ll come across more of those types of cases.”
DeChambeau commented back to Koepka and the two seem to have met and talked about the issue.
DeChambeau said: “It was great. “We never wanted that. So that was amazing. We had a great conversation and had a new level of respect for him.”
And, ironically, their feud is far from over.
January 2020 – ‘I got abs’
The feud flared up again after DeChambeau spoke out about Koepka’s body following his appearance on ESPN’s Body Matters.
Koepka responded to DeChambeau’s comments on Twitter by showing off his four big wins. At the time, DeChambeau had not won a major tournament.
August 2020 – Mad Scientist
Koepka continued to make indirect attacks at DeChambeau through parts of the 2020 season. He never called out DeChambeau by name, but many of his comments led people to believe he was talking about DeChambeau. For example, in this clip, Koepka says, “There’s no reason to be a scientist. …” DeChambeau is known as the “Mad Scientist” because he uses background knowledge. Sports science background to improve your game.
May 2021 – Roll your eyes
The 2021 plot of the DeChambeau-Koepka feud was born at the 2021 PGA Championship. It all started with an eye roll.
This video quickly became a viral meme on social networks and made many people curious about their feud. What did Bryson say? Why don’t they like each other? etc.
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Later, when DeChambeau was announced to be playing in “The Match 4” featuring Aaron Rodgers, Koepka took to Twitter to “sorry” Rodgers for having to play with DeChambeau. DeChambeau will certainly answer that as well.
@BKoepka It’s great that you’re rent-free!
– Bryson DeChambeau (@b_dechambeau) May 26, 2021
June 2021 – Brooksy
The story of “Brooksy” began at the Memorial Tournament in June when the audience started shouting “Brooksy” at DeChambeau while he was playing. Koepka even started promoting the moniker by calling herself “Brooksy” in the videos.
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July 2021 – Driver
During The Open 2021, DeChambeau remarked that his driver was sucked one day into the event, and then Koepka decided to start emphasizing his love for his driver. First, he mentioned it in an interview, then he posted about it on Twitter.
THAN: Brooks Koepka trolls Bryson DeChambeau after driver’s comment
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August 2021 – The end of Brooksy
In the final round at the BMW Championship, DeChambeau competed in a six-hole playoff against Patrick Cantlay. Fans kept shouting “Brooksy” at him, and he ended up having more than enough. DeChambeau said “You know what? Let’s start” to one of the fans who called him “Brooksy.”
This caused the PGA Tour to step in. PGA Commissioner Jay Monahan has announced that any fan using “Brooksy” at PGA Tour events may be barred from attending future events.
THAN: PGA Tour commissioner explains why golf fans can no longer scream ‘Brooksie’ at Bryson DeChambeau
September 2021 – Ryder Cup saved the day?
Ahead of the 2021 Ryder Cup, Koepka assured Team America captain Steve Stricker that the two opponents would have their best behavior at the event. Stricker made sure not to cooperate with them in any competition, though it was later discovered that both wanted to be partners.
THAN: Bryson DeChambeau wants to ‘continue’ from Brooks Koepka feud ahead of 2021 Ryder Cup
After Team America won, Koepka and DeChambeau were seen hugging, celebrating together and even wearing “best friend” shirts. Many believe this is a way to make it public that the feud is over.
THAN: Bryson DeChambeau, Brooks Koepka celebrate USA Ryder Cup win with a hug
However, during “The Match” week, DeChambeau and Koepka took to the field and said the Ryder Cup hug was forced.
“It was definitely a bit forced,” DeChambeau said, via Bleacher Report. “The team wanted us to do it and to be honest, I was surprised he did it. But I’m a guy who can sort things out behind my back pretty quickly when you’re sorry and then Then we could move on. But that definitely felt forced, no apology or anything like that. Until I got an apology for what he said and what he said. nothing, things won’t change.”
Granted, their hatred for each other is as real as it could be. DeChambeau said “it’s all real to me,” while Koepka said, “I never really liked him.”
November 2021 – ‘The Match’
Before DeChambeau and Koepka’s “The Match” contest, they revived parts of their feud as a way to promote the event. Here are some of their tweets that they used to promote “The Match”.
