There is no more silence in the dispute between Brooks Koepka and Bryson DeChambeau.
And what broke it?
A comment on silence.
It came this week, in a video posted by Skratch’s “Dan on Golf” show (and you can watch the full video here ). here). Host Dan Rapaport said DeChambeau said Rory McIlroy he had not spoken to him while the two were paired together at last year’s Masters.
“I shouldn’t have,” Koepka said in response.
The five-time major winner had more thoughts.
“Well, I mean, he lives in his world,” Koepka said. “I mean, I don’t think a lot of people want to talk to him, regardless.
“But yeah, I wouldn’t have talked to Rory, and I don’t think Rory would have talked to me, and it would have been completely fine.”
Call it a jab. Whether it will be answered is not clear. But there had been a long back and forth between the professors. In January 2020, DeChambeau spoke Koepka’s abs. In July 2020, DeChambeau tried to get relief from fire ants during a round, and the next day, Koepka jokingly tried as well. At the 2021 PGA Championship, Koepka was caught they roll their eyes during an interview as DeChambeau walked past him. At the 2021 Memorial, fans shouted “Brooksy” at DeChambeau, and Koepka. he asked them with a free beer offer. But after both players joined LIV Golf in 2022, the comments mostly stopped.
Then came last year’s Masters, where DeChambeau was asked a few questions about the conversation with McIlroy, who won the event. (Questions are in italics.)
Did you talk about it here? How are you?
“No idea,” DeChambeau said. “He hasn’t spoken to me once all day.”
What was the atmosphere like?
“Electric,” DeChambeau said. “I loved it. But it was just like – just being focused, I guess. It’s not me, though.”
Have you tried starting a conversation with Rory?
“He wasn’t talking to me,” DeChambeau said.
As for what McIlroy made of things, he had this to say a month after the PGA Championship:
“I don’t know what he expected. We’re trying to win the Masters. I’m not going to try to be his best partner here.
“Look, everyone approaches the game differently. Yes, like I was focused on myself and what I needed to do. That’s really all I was. It was nothing against him or against – it’s just that I felt that was what I needed to do to try to get the best out of me that day.”
On the Dan on Golf show, Koepka ended his thoughts on the subject by saying “he’s not a big talker.” Maybe he’ll say something at the beginning of a round. Maybe he’ll say something to a player he doesn’t know well. But it’s here, he said.
“But then,” Koepka said, “it’s like, OK, cool, I’m just going to do myself, see. And I don’t feel bad.
