Jon Rahm downplays Bryson DeChambeau’s criticism of the Open Championship pace of play

Jon Rahm shrugged off complaints on the pace of play at The Open Championship 2025. The Spaniard downplayed the alleged slow play at Royal Portrush Golf Club after Bryson DeChambeau made harsh comments on the same. Rahm, ahead of the final round of the 153rd British Open, said the delay in play could be credited to the major’s big field.

DeChambeau, unhappy with the play at The Open, said timing players could help speed up the play. However, Rahm played this down and said every major, excluding the Masters, has over 150 players teeing up which led to some delay in play. The 2023 Masters champion added that events with smaller fields, doesn’t have pace of play as an issue.

Interestingly, the European Ryder Cupper asked the reporters if the pace of play at The Open was an issue, claiming that he never noticed.

Replying to a media query on Bryson DeChambeau’s criticism of The Open’s play, Jon Rahm said, as quoted by ASAP Sports:

“At least the people that played in my wave, we had a lot of rain come in and out, so umbrellas out, glove out, put the rain gear on, take the rain gear off, give the umbrella to the caddie. It becomes a lot longer that way. Like I said to them, it usually is very much related to the number of players in the field. When you have 150 plus the first two rounds, every single major except the Masters, obviously, is going to be longer rounds. It's just what it is… We don't have -- in smaller fields when you have less people, and even in threesomes in small fields, you don't really have that issue. Once they get to the Playoffs or DP World championship or Abu Dhabi, those are not things that become an issue.”

The Legion XIII skipper dubbed the field size-based delay “the flow of the game.” He said there’s “very little” that could be done to make those rounds shorter and called it the “nature of the game.”

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Jon Rahm's advice to LIV Golfers at The Open

Jon Rahm went on to state that LIV Golf’s 54-hole shotgun format lets players “absolutely fly.” He said that the Saudi-backed series’ rounds are limited to four and a half hours unless it is affected by the weather. The 11-time PGA Tour winner suggested his peers talk to their caddies and playing partners regarding the pace of play at big events like The Open.

He reiterated there is ‘nothing’ payers can do to keep their minds engaged during play.

Sharing his personal approach to playing at majors’ pace, Jon Rahm said:

“It's a bit of an adjustment after playing in LIV because we absolutely fly. The one thing we do, I feel like every round is less than four and a half hours unless the weather conditions are crazy. Doral may be a little bit longer… It is an adjustment when you get to play a six-hour round a little bit, but I also know it's going to happen. So talk to your caddie, talk to your playing partners. While there's nothing you can do, just try to keep your mind engaged in something else but the game.”

Jon Rahm suggested players ‘distract’ themselves while they wait and ‘lock back in’ when it's time to hit the fairway again.

Edited by Vishnu Mohan