Texas-born professional golfer, Bryson DeChambeau is one of the PGA Tour’s most established names. Winning the U.S. Amateur back in 2015, DeChambeau became only the fifth person to win the championship and the NCAA Division I championship in the same year – and, in light of his successes, many of the star’s fans are eager to know DeChambeau’s formula for achieving glory.
Bryson DeChambeau has experimented with the use of graphite shafts. In his pursuit of fame and success, DeChambeau is believed to have tried a number of steel shafts and also 124.5-gram graphite shafts that he claims are “stiffer than anything made”.
Over the course of the last decade, graphite has actually more or less become the material of choice for the many golfers on the PGA Tour, and DeChambeau is no different.
The emergence of graphite as a preferable alternative to iron and steel shafts is fascinating and DeChambeau has spoken about the shift in the past.
DeChambeau’s New Gear
Speaking to the media before at the start of the new season back in October 2019, DeChambeau said: “[I’ve] changed all my shafts to graphite LAGP graphite shafts… So far working really, really, really well.”
Regarding his new gear and the influence on his form, the pro golfer also said:
“It’s pretty cool to see the consistent ball spin rates in wet and dry conditions. The ability to control the ball flight in the air is on a different level. It’s not moving as much. It’s more stable in flight.”
“I just feel like all in all there are a couple things. I’ve got a new ball in, new shafts in. Albeit I have got a lot of new things in the bag, I feel like I’ve been using them for a while now already, which is kind of cool.”
The switch to graphite shafts hasn’t been straightforward though, with DeChambeau also saying:
“I have to do some more testing and figure out — and just get used to it. This was my second week on Tour with graphite shafts, so that is kind of weird. First week playing the full set, and finishing 20-under par shows it does work. The main key is the stability in the shaft. We have shafts in there that are incredibly stiff, so it’s helped for consistency and repeatability through impact.”
Generally speaking, it’s no surprise that pros are making the change now, with graphite shafts becoming increasingly popular.
Speaking about the emergence of graphite shafts, Aerotech Golf’s president Chris Hilleary once said: “The early graphite iron shafts were made with inferior materials, processing, and designs… They started to gain traction at one point, but all of those pitfalls basically created a retreat of the use, and steel continued to dominate from there.
“That’s when all of the shaft manufacturers started to concentrate on driver and fairway wood shafts. I saw this huge void in the market and started out to design a composite iron shaft that stronger players could embrace.”
Bryson DeChambeau’s Revolution
With his quick decisions to change the equipment he uses, the strategies he operates, and even his own body, DeChambeau has been dubbed the leader of a “revolution” whose approach is both “radical” and “power-based”.
To be candid, DeChambeau is the talk of the town and following the return of the PGA Tour after the COVID-19 shutdown, the pro made four straight top-10 finishes that concluded in that astonishing victory at the Rocket Mortgage Classic.
Commentators of the sport believe that DeChambeau’s form is all down to his big focus on personal fitness and obsession with the body. Greg Roskopf – a fitness “guru” – who has been integral to DeChambeau’s success, once said:
“He looks like a weightlifter, but he’s got the flexibility of a golfer. When you have greater range of motion and greater strength through those ranges of motion, you’re seeing what it does to his game.”
DeChambeau’s body transformation may appear drastic, but the golfer suggests that it’s all based on a foundation of sports science, saying: “People think I’ve got all these crazy theories… but when you really break it down to the root principles of what I’m trying to do, it’s a lot of common sense.”
The Golfer’s Changing Game
In a recent interview, DeChambeau stated: “I want to try and go where nobody’s gone before”. In truth, following his consistent innovations to his game and upgrades to his body, there’s no doubt that DeChambeau will get to that promised land soon enough.