Arnold Palmer Invite: Bryson DeChambeau Bombs Way to Big Round

Bryson DeChambeau has not been at the top of his game in his last couple of outings. But on Thursday at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, DeChambeau was back to being more like the player who won his first major championship at the U.S. Open last fall.

The long-hitting DeChambeau wasted little time getting under par for his Thursday round. Playing the back nine first, DeChambeau drove it in the fairway on the par-4 10th hole. His second shot landed about 12 feet from the cup and he made the putt to get to 1-under par.

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The only blemish on his card came on the par-4 11th hole. There, he drove it in the fairway but his second shot missed left of the green. His third shot left him about four feet for par. But he missed the putt and suffered a bogey five.

DeChambeau wasted little time in getting that shot back. On the par-5 12th hole, he drove it in the fairway and his second shot came up just short of the green. He chipped to about five feet, then made the putt for his second birdie of the day. He was back under par.

The rest of his first nine consisted of five pars and a birdie. That one came at the par-4 15th hole where DeChambeau nearly holed out on his second shot. He tapped in for a birdie and would close his first nine with a 2-under par 34.

On his second nine, DeChambeau had one stretch where he got red-hot.

He started with pars on the first, second and third holes to remain at 2-under par. Then came the fireworks.

The fun started at the par-5 fourth hole, where DeChambeau was just short of the green in two, then got up-and-down for his fourth birdie of the day. It left him at 3-under par.

On the par-4 fifth hole, DeChambeau bombed his drive about 350 yards. After taking a drop from the cart path, he hit his second shot to about 13 feet. He made that putt to get to 4-under on his round.

Then on the par-5 sixth hole, DeChambeau hit the green in two and two-putted for his third birdie in a row. This one got him to 5-under on his round, which is where he would finish.

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DeChambeau is just one shot behind leaders Rory McIlroy and Corey Conners after one round. This is a much different start than the 77 he had last week at the WGC-Workday Championship or the 75 he started with at the Genesis Invitational.

It appears that the real DeChambeau is back this week, bombing his way to near the lead. It will be interesting to see if he can continue to do so all week at the API.

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