'I'm Not Particularly Fond Of Him. I Think A Lot Of It Is Performative' - Rory McIlroy Accuses Bryson DeChambeau Of 'Holding The Open Hostage' After Rules Controversy

World No.2 Rory McIlroy has accused Bryson DeChambeau of 'holding The Open Championship hostage' following a rules controversy which exploded into life on Friday evening.

DeChambeau was found guilty of improving his swing path on the fifth hole of Friday's second round - although The R&A stressed it was accidental - and the American was docked two strokes.

During the discussions which took place at the time, it was thought DeChambeau threatened to pull out of the final men's Major completely in protest.

Then, due to a long discussion with rules officials late on Friday evening and a range session involving DeChambeau which lasted well after the sun had set in Birkdale, tee times were not available until close to 11pm local time - by which time many players were beginning to air their frustration on social media.

DeChambeau ultimately opted to remain in the championship and began the third round three strokes back of leader Lucas Herbert.

Nevertheless, the sequence of events did not sit well with McIlroy, who aired his brutally honest thoughts on DeChambeau's actions after completing his own third round.

McIlroy said: "Yeah, look, I won't pretend to be up here and defend Bryson. I'm not particularly fond of him. I think a lot of it's performative. I think a lot of it's for attention.

"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."

While DeChambeau was predictably disappointed at the outcome of his rules controversy - saying he was "disappointed" and "doesn't agree with it" on social media - McIlroy felt The R&A had no other option having witnessed the footage live in the players' lounge.

He continued: "I was watching it live. I was up in the players lounge watching it with a few other players, and as soon as he made the step into the ball, we all sort of looked at each other, and we were like, that didn't seem right.

"Then when I heard that he was called in by the rules officials, I think we all -- it was pretty obvious for why.

"Yeah, I think there's no doubt that he improved the line of his backswing. Again, it's like, whether it was careless or whether it was intentional, I don't think it matters. Hopefully it was careless, but I think the two-shot penalty was justified for sure."

Both players certainly have a history of not seeing eye to eye, with McIlroy famously not speaking to DeChambeau en route to his first Masters triumph.

That occurred less than 12 months on from DeChambeau's second US Open victory - at which he took advantage of a late slip from the Northern Irishman.

DeChambeau is almost certain to respond to McIlroy's comments via some medium following the third round today, with the American never short on an opinion or slow to defend himself.

However, just how he does that remains something of a mystery with the American currently on a long break from speaking with independent media outlets.

Meanwhile, other players have also weighed in on DeChambeau's controversial moment this week, with many defending the LIV golfer.

Xander Schauffele felt the Californian could have been given the benefit of the doubt and felt sympathy for the situation DeChambeau found himself in.

The 2024 Open champion said: "It's a tough one... I haven't spoken to him or heard what he said, but he's just stepping in how you'd normally step in to hit a golf shot.

"I think The R&A said something along the lines of whether it's intentional or not, it's still a penalty.

“It's a tough spot to be, obviously, when you're in high brush, kind of having to dance around to get to your golf ball is a tricky thing. It's not something we're used to doing that often.

"You imagine you give him the benefit of the doubt; he said he didn't do it intentionally, and it's unfortunate that he got penalized because he was playing incredibly well and obviously he's still playing incredibly well, so he's obviously going to have something to prove these next two days.”

Max Homa went one step further, claiming he didn't agree with the ruling and argued that DeChambeau "would never cheat the game of golf."

He said: "I only saw one angle, and in my opinion I didn't agree with the ruling. I know there's another angle that -- side on, it's always hard to tell if it improves anything.

“All I know is I've known Bryson for a very long time, and he's an interesting human at times, but I know he would never cheat the game of golf.

"I don't really love how it happened. It's not that The R&A said that he did it intentionally, but that rule as a professional golfer feels like it's written inherently to protect against people trying to improve their lie.

"So I just hope that doesn't create a narrative because I don't believe that of him."