What did Nick Faldo say about Bryson DeChambeau?

Faldo publicly said he would tell DeChambeau to his face that the American has "zero clue" about Open strategy, criticizing his power-first approach to links golf.

Why might DeChambeau struggle at The Open?

The Open's links courses reward low trajectories, running shots, and creative use of the ground; DeChambeau's high-launch, power-centric game and equipment choices can make those shots harder to execute.

What should DeChambeau change before The Open?

He should work with a links coach to lower launch and spin, practice knock-down and running approaches, adjust loft/bounce and club choice, and rehearse strategic course management.

Faldo's Stark Warning: Bryson Must Lose the Bomb or Lose The Open

Nick Faldo's headline-grabbing line — "I'd say it to his face — DeChambeau has zero clue of Open strategy" — landed like a challenge more than a critique. The six-time major winner knows links golf and he used blunt language to expose what he sees as a fatal mismatch between Bryson DeChambeau's modus operandi and the demands of The Open Championship. Faldo's barbs are designed to provoke, but they also force a useful conversation: raw power meets ancient seaside turf.

DeChambeau's strengths are obvious — extraordinary clubhead speed, length, and a forensic approach to data — but those same qualities can be liabilities on firm, wind-swept links where the ground is an equal partner. Links golf rewards angles, low trajectories, creative use of the bounce and run, and the capacity to craft three- and four-shot holes rather than muscle through them. Bryson's single-minded flight profiles and equipment philosophy make conventional links shots harder to execute and predict.

Tactical adjustments are concrete: lower launch, more knock-down shots, softened spin, different bounce and loft management, and a return to imagination over metrics when the wind and ground conspire. Faldo's dismissal is exaggerated but rooted in truth — many long hitters have learned humility on links, adapting club selection and shot patterns rather than doubling down on distance. History is clear: champions who mastered the Open did so by thinking two shots ahead and letting the turf do the work.

My prescription is simple and urgent. Bryson must spend weeks on true links turf with a dedicated links coach, alter setup and launch numbers, and rehearse running approaches and creative escapes; otherwise Faldo's warning will be prophetic and his Open result disappointing. The Guru's prediction: if DeChambeau adapts quickly he'll threaten a top-10; if he doesn't, expect a fade outside the podium — raw power will not outmuscle the links without humility and craft.