‘Iceman.’ The word would be written in bold across Bryson DeChambeau‘s golf ball. A constant reminder that he needs to be stoic, emotionless, and cold. Something he clearly wasn’t, but was trying to be because of his inspiration, Tiger Woods.

“Tiger was always a big inspiration of mine,” DeChambeau told Flushing It Golf. “He was emotional when he won. Every other moment, it was just seriousness. I think that’s where that came from. I tried to be like that for so long.” Then came the realization. “I realized I couldn’t be that person. I was just going to be somebody different. And it wasn’t really until I was 28 or 29 that I’d learned who I really was.”

For young golfers, Woods’s coldness was an appealing persona. Imagine a golfer of Woods’s stature, and as a new golfer, you’d surely want to imitate him. The 15x major winner never let his emotions show on the course. His 2019 Masters is a prime example. In the final round, the cameras hovered around Woods, as in a few seconds, he was about to win his 15th major, his first in 11 years, but his face remained unreadable. As the ball rolled down the course on the back nine, Woods traced it with his eyes. No celebration ensued from him till the putt dropped.

The most notable instance of Woods ever showing emotions on the course was at The Open ’06. This victory marked his first major without his dad there. After sinking the winning putt at Royal Liverpool Golf Club, Hoylake, Woods dissolved into tears, hugging his then-caddie, Steve Williams, and then-wife, Elin.

DeChambeau would also mimic Woods’s personality as closely as possible, but the latter’s energy wasn’t built in a day. Since his childhood, the 5x Masters winner has worked with his father, Earl, to build a solid internal focus. Oftentimes, it made him come off as rather rude and unwelcoming.

Bryson’s mother can definitely vouch for this. DeChambeau’s real personality is the outspoken, creative dude we see on YouTube. But back then, coldness and the golfers who possessed it were in trend. Not only Woods, but also DeChambeau was equally (or more) inspired by Ben Hogan‘s intensity.

“It was Ben Hogan from the start. Ben Hogan by a long shot,” he shared. “There was just this classical notion of emotional stoicism, the Iceman…everybody wanted to be like that.”

As he further revealed, DeChambeau would spend hours binge-watching Hogan’s golf swing on YouTube. He specifically remembers one, where beautiful music played in the background as Hogan made his putts. That moment stuck with the LIV golfer. There was “beauty,” and there was “mysteriousness,” and that’s how Hogan became DeChambeau’s all-time best golfer.

“I think that’s why a lot of players are robots today, because of the likes of Hogan and what Tiger did.”

DeChambeau isn’t a robot anymore, and the credit for that might also go to Woods.

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When Bryson DeChambeau saw the real Tiger Woods

Paris, 2018. DeChambeau’s first appearance in the Ryder Cup. As he and Tiger Woods, his partner in that round, prepared to tee off, the crowd’s noise heightened. They were in enemy territory. For DeChambeau, this was a novel experience. For Woods, this was his eighth appearance in the event. A fact that made his young partner think he could ask for his help.

“I asked Tiger, ‘OK, so who’s in the first tee shot?’ he told Golf Channel once. ” And he goes, ‘You’re on the first tee shot.’ And I’m like, ‘Yes, sir. OK. I guess I’m on the first tee shot.’ Luckily, I hit it in the fairway, but that was the most nervous I’d ever been hitting a tee shot.”

In 2021, Woods also texted DeChambeau ahead of his big Arnold Palmer Invitational win. “I got a text from Tiger this morning. We just talked about ‘just keep fighting, no matter what happens,’ and ‘play boldly like Mr. Palmer,'” the LIV golfer said after his win over Lee Westwood.

Another turning point came in 2022.

DeChambeau had a severe hamate bone fracture. For a while, golf became impossible to follow. His doctors scared him that he might never be able to play. DeChambeau endured an agonizing recovery, but just as he was getting back on his feet, another storm entered his life. His father passed away. When faced with these real human challenges, the golfer was now forced to react humanely. The process took him a long time, but he finally found his real self. This was quite visible in his 2024 US Open victory. He finally let go of Tiger Woods’s temperament and cried as he sank the final putt.

“I recognize that I have to be my authentic self. If you’re not your authentic self, how can you ever live a life worth anything?” DeChambeau proudly says.

The relationship between Woods and DeChambeau isn’t what it used to be after the latter moved to LIV. From texting regularly to not replying to birthday messages and then congratulating Bryson for his second US Open win, their bonding is now all over the place.