Portrush, Northern Ireland – After starting the open championship with a disappointing 78 in the first round, Bryson Deccanbeau spins in three straight rounds, including Sunday’s 64.
“I’ve always told you guys, when it’s fair, I like it,” said Decanbeau, tied up to 144th after the first round. “…When it’s raining and windy, you still have to crack the cord. It was a fun three days. I was really proud of the way it wielded it and actually gave it hope.”
With his finish, Deccanbo will likely solidify his spot with the US Ryder Cup team. Heading this week, the two US open winners were fifth after Russell Henry, Xander Schaufele, JJ Spawn and Scotty Schaufferer. The top six players in the ranking will be automatically qualified for teams that will play Europeans at Bethpage State Park in September. As captain, Keegan Bradley selects the remaining six players.
“I hope we can bring about a tsunami and tsunami of crowds cheering for Team USA,” he said.
Dechambeau said his experience playing team golf on Liv taught him that the best approach to getting involved in team setting is to “make individuals the best individuals to add to the team.”
“That’s all,” he said. “Don’t put someone in the bubble and say, ‘You need to do this, you need to do that.’ ”
As he was on the losers of two Ryder Cup teams (2018) and the winning side of two Ryder Cup teams (2021), Deccanbeau was not part of a team that traveled to Rome in 2023 and lost to the Europeans.
“I’m kidding this year,” Deccanbeau said. “We’re tired of it. We’re tired of losing.”
Bradley was on the field this week, finishing at 4 under. There have been a lot of talk about whether Bradley should be the team’s captain, but he said he hasn’t made a decision yet, but added that if he reaches the team, he has an emergency plan.
“It’s certainly not easy. There’s nothing about picking someone that’s going to make it easier, but if you think you’re going to get to that position and help your team, I’ll consider playing,” Bradley said earlier this week. “I obviously want to wait until it’s time to pick a player and see how they do it. If there’s someone who’s playing great to take my spot, I’m excited about it. I just want to have the best teams on Beth Page’s course.”
According to Deccanbeau, Bradley went out of his way to give anything to all the potential players who could join the team this week.
“I talked briefly with him, and he put something that was pretty inspirational in our locker,” Deccanbeau said. “That made a lot of sense.”