Scottie Scheffler Not a ‘Fan’ of What Rory McIlroy Said About Bryson DeChambeau at British Open

Scottie Scheffler weighed in on the Rory McIlroy-Bryson DeChambeau rivalry. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The British Open ended in dramatic fashion last Sunday but what happened over a wild few days at Royal Birkdale is still very much a hot topic, mostly because it involves two of the biggest names in the sport—Bryson DeChambeau and Rory McIlroy.

The day after DeChambeau was issued a stunning two-shot penalty following his second round, McIlroy met with the media and voiced his displeasure with how DeChambeau handled the whole situation. He said it definitely looked like DeChambeau moved the grass behind his ball to get a clearer swing in the long rough and then got really personal when he said of DeChambeau: “I'm not particularly fond of him.”

And just like that, the rivalry between two got even more intense.

NESBITT: Bryson DeChambeau Needs to Stop Acting Like Such a Child

Scottie Scheffler was asked about McIlroy and DeChambeau during his press conference at the PGA Tour’s 3M Open on Wednesday. While he downplayed the rivalry between the two star golfers, he did said there was one thing he didn’t like—the way McIlroy took a shot at DeChambeau.

“I've never been a big fan of personal jabs. I don't think that rivalry is a big thing in golf just because, like I said, my biggest rivalry week in and week out is the golf course.”

After Rory McIlroy’s comments about Bryson DeChambeau at The Open, Scottie Scheffler was asked ahead of the 3M Open if he thinks rivalries are good for golf:

“I think golf's different in a sense of a lot of other sports because my biggest rival week in and week out is the golf… pic.twitter.com/LLdkAj0WKL

— Flushing It (@flushingitgolf) July 22, 2026

After last Sunday’s final round at the British Open, Scheffler came to the defense of DeChambeau, saying he’s not a cheater and has never done anything to deserve be called that.

“All I'll say is Bryson, I've known him for a long time, and he's a lot of things, but he's definitely not a cheater,” Scheffler said last Sunday. “I've never seen him cheat once, whether we were having a putting contest on the putting green or chipping contest, or anytime we played amateur golf, I never saw anything suspicious.”

Why Scottie Scheffler thinks there are no real rivalries in golf

Scheffler isn’t a big fan of rivalry talk in golf. The No. 1 player in the world explained why on Wednesday, saying golf is not like other sports.

NESBITT: The PGA Tour Can’t Love What Rory McIlroy Said About It After the British Open

“I think golf's different in a sense of a lot of other sports because my biggest rival week in and week out is the golf course that we're playing,” Scheffler said. “I mean, I could never stop somebody from doing anything in golf. I felt like when I played basketball there would always be rivalries in basketball because you're going to play defense against a person and that is much more personal in a sense like because I'm actively trying to stop— like if you and I were going to go out and play one-on-one, like it would turn into a rivalry because I'm actively trying to stop what you're doing, but in golf, we're always competing against ourselves on the golf course.”

Scheffler is right in that golf is unique and it really is about players trying to beat a golf course every day. But let’s be honest, this McIlroy-DeChambeau situation is a rivalry. It’s clear they are not big fans of each other and they have had some intense showdowns over the years. DeChambeau was able to beat McIlroy by a shot at the 2024 U.S. Open at Pinehurst, and then in 2025 they were in the final pairing on Sunday at the Masters and had a bit of a heated moment on the ninth green. McIlroy went on to win the tournament that year and complete the career Grand Slam.

Rivalries can form in golf and they only make it more fun for the fans of the sport. Scheffler might not love it, but we sure do.

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