Bryson DeChambeau Explains Road Hole Free Drop At 150th Open

Bryson DeChambeau benefitted from the Abnormal Course Conditions rule on the 17th and 18th holes at The Open to finish par-birdie despite two pulled tee shots.

His drive on 17 went about as far left as we've seen anyone hit it this week, with his ball nestling into thick rough on the edge of a gorse bush. From there it looked like a chip-out and a battle to make bogey but he was allowed a free drop because a grandstand and scoreboard stood in his line of play - which are classed as immovable obstructions.

DeChambeau managed to get a free drop and was able to get his ball to the edge of the green on the road, where he played a sublime chip shot into the bank and managed to come away with a par.

Watch his crazy 17th hole:

"You had the grandstands in my line and the scoreboard in my line," DeChambeau said. "So I could go back out where it was in between the TV tower, which is a totally different drop as well. I could have dropped again, but it would have put me in the fescue. I was like, you know what, I'm just going to leave it. I'm fine with that. Work it to my advantage and overcut it. Compensation from 16 [he made double bogey]. Just got to go work on being more consistent."

He then went miles left again on the 18th hole, hitting it towards the grandstand and then benefitting from a free drop. Bryson got it up-and-down from there to finish par-birdie and get into the clubhouse at six-under-par after a 67.

"I was up against the fence, and they have drop zones for that," he said of the 18th hole. "And then out-of-bounds stakes were past that and farther left of that. Kind of nice. You can just hit it into there. Yeah, it rolled into there. I'm not trying to actually hit it in there. Just kind of pulled left."

DeChambeau is just about within touching distance of the leaders at St Andrews and should record his first top-10 finish in a world ranking event this year. He's been plagued by injuries and has seen his world ranking tumble down to 33rd. He says he's is almost back to 100% so we could start to see him back in the winner's circle in the LIV Golf Invitational Series this year.

"I'm probably 97 to 98 percent now," he said. "There's every once in a while where my hand gets tired, fatigued still. For the most part, I'm going to start speed training here again after -- in the month of August when I don't have any tournaments going on for me."

And on LIV, the Golfing Scientist thinks that the rival tours will find a way of coexisting.

"I think over the course of time it will all work itself out," he said. " I think in some capacity we'll find a way to coexist and work together through this to make the best entertainment we possibly can for the world."