'They're Not Being Tested, And So They're Not Ready' - Brandel Chamblee Pulls No Punches In DeChambeau And Rahm Masters Criticism
The golf analyst didn't hold back when asked what he made of Bryson DeChambeau's and Jon Rahm's performances after the first round of the Masters
Golf analyst Brandel Chamblee was highly critical of Jon Rahm for his performance in the first round of the Masters, and branded Bryson DeChambeau's approach play as "abysmal" after both LIV players struggled at Augusta on Thursday.
Not a single one of the ten LIV players in the field broke par in the first round, and Chamblee was quick to criticize Rahm and DeChambeau, both of whom arrived in Georgia as two of the favorites to pull on the Green Jacket.
"I'm more surprised at Jon Rahm than Bryson," said Chamblee on the Golf Channel's Live From segment shown on the Sky Sports website, who also questioned the pair's stats on the eve of the Masters.
"What Bryson did with his iron play is what Bryson has been doing with his iron play since the first year that he played here. I've really not seen any change in it.
"I detailed last night how deficient in iron play he is here. He swings way in to out; he gets a lot of surprises here.
"There are 91 players in this field. If you look at the field, there are a lot of former players [past champions]. Understandably, they're going to be pretty weak. He's 72nd in Strokes Gained In Approach. That's abysmal."
Bryson DeChambeau cut a frustrated figure during much of the first day at Augusta
DeChambeau, who sits second behind Rahm in the 2026 LIV Golf standings, opened his 2026 Masters account with a four-over-par 76, two shots better than an equally out-of-sorts Rahm, who won at Augusta in 2023 before joining the Saudi-backed breakaway circuit later in the year.
Chamblee was just as critical of Rahm, and believes the pair's performance can only be attributed to playing on a less competitive tour. Watching Rahm on Thursday, Chamblee said it was "like he forgot to play the game".
"It's amazing to me," he said. "Every tee, he's swinging as hard as he can, it's like he's in a long drive contest. I've never seen anybody swing it as hard as he's swinging it every single tee shot. It's like there's no nuance, there's no niche to his golf swing."
To make an even stronger point, Chamblee, who believes Rahm and DeChambeau aren't being challenged on LIV, compared the situation to Steph Curry "going out and shooting free throws with a hula-hoop-size rim, thinking he's a hundred per cent."
"That's kind of the false arrogance that they would have coming in here. They're not being challenged. They're not being tested, and so they're not ready. They're playing golf courses that are not particularly hard. They're not set up very hard, and they've only got to beat five or six guys."
Despite Brooks Koepka and DeChambeau winning a Major title as LIV players, Chamblee believes they have collectively become "worse and worse and worse" as time has gone on.
Former Masters champion Jon Rahm didn't make a single birdie in his opening round
Fellow golf analyst and former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley didn't spare the pair from criticism, either, although he does believe the poor collective performance of the LIV golfers was "an anomaly" and that Rahm and DeChambeau are clearly better players than they showed on Thursday.
"I think there's a lot to be said for the intensity that you would have on the PGA Tour competitively compared to what you would have on LIV," he said. "There's no doubt there's a difference there. There's a different dynamic.
"It's a different business model, and it's a different environment for you to play golf in. You've got the music going on the whole time, you've got golf courses that are set up for low scoring,
"It's gung-ho golf, and when you come here, you're not mentally prepared for getting knocked back and being resilient from coming back from mistakes that you make, which are inevitable around Augusta National."
After the end of the first round, DeChambeau and Rahm finished nine and eleven shots back of co-leaders Rory McIlroy and Sam Burns, respectively.
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