Bryson DeChambeau‘s start at the Masters 2026 wasn’t a dreamy one as he was left covering his mouth after a mishap. Within the high-pressure environment of the opening round, particularly at the par-3 6th hole (Juniper), DeChambeau found himself in a situation that required him to make immediate amends.

Bryson DeChambeau’s tee shot at the sixth wandered off line and ended up striking a patron. The LIV golfer did shout “fore left” to warn spectators near the green. Still, the ball dropped sharply and hit a fan on the legs before rolling back into play.

As for how brutal the hit looked, commentating on Sky Sports, Nick Dougherty noted, “The fact he didn’t go down, shows it didn’t hurt as bad as it looked thankfully…”

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However, DeChambeau couldn’t help but wince back on the tee, briefly even covering his mouth. So, DeChambeau made his way over to the fan and handed him a ball as an apology. 

You can check that out below:

This is not the first time DeChambeau’s high-powered game has intersected with the gallery, nor is it his first time making a public effort to mend fences.  At the 2024 PGA Championship at Valhalla, DeChambeau won over the crowd when he tossed a ball to a young fan. After an older man intercepted the souvenir, DeChambeau stopped in his tracks, shouting and pointing until the man returned the ball to its rightful owner.

But how did Bryson DeChambeau manage to finish the hole? Luckily for DeChambeau, the ball rolled back and stayed in a 15-20 foot roll parallel onto the edge of the putting surface. He went into the green and put it into the cup in two shots to save a par for the hole.

And this was far from the only patron-player encounter in the opening round. The 2022 US Open champion, Matt Fitzpatrick, faced an awkward encounter with fans on hole 3. He hit his ball off to the right on the par four third hole, which suddenly changed direction before hitting the patron’s beer, knocking the drink out of their hand.  The patron could be seen staring at the floor in slight confusion before looking back towards the tee box after the incident.

Coming back to DeChambeau, before the drama at the 6th, his opening stretch was a rollercoaster. He teed off at 10:07 a.m. ET alongside Matt Fitzpatrick and Xander Schauffele. He started steadily, but on the Par 5 Hole 2 (Pink Dogwood), he hooked his drive into a bush left of the fairway. He was forced to take a drop for an unplayable lie; he eventually carded a bogey 6 on a hole, where he would typically expect a birdie.

He entered carpe-diem mode immediately, bouncing back by rattling in a birdie putt to return to level par on Par 4, Flowering Peach. Then he hit what some called the ‘shot of the day,’ a high draw over the flag to six feet. However, he failed to convert the birdie, leaving him “deflated” as the putt dribbled past. And just before this errant shot on 6th, he saved the par on Par 4, Magnolia.

And as of now, DeChambeau is at level par (E), sitting in T18, while Kurt Kitayama was leading the leaderboard with a 4 under par score through 11. The defending champion, Rory McIlroy, started his day with a solid par on the 1st and is currently sitting at the T20 after making a bogey on the 4th hole.

Bryson DeChambeau is chasing redemption at the 2026 Masters

The 2026 Masters marks DeChambeau’s 10th start at Augusta National. Back in 2020, DeChambeau claimed that his length turned the par-72 Augusta National into a par-67—a comment that backfired when he finished T34 that year. DeChambeau missed two cuts in his next three trips to Augusta and expressed regret about making the comments.

And last year, DeChambeau was in the final pairing on Sunday with Rory McIlroy and briefly held the lead after the second hole. However, he “wilted” on the back nine, double-bogeying the 11th and bogeying the 12th en route to a 3-over 75 and a T5 finish. So this week, he entered the tournament with a desire to finally claim the Green Jacket, having transitioned from his 2020 attempt to overpower the course to a new philosophy of strategic obedience.

And despite his uneven start, some of the golf’s most influential voices have identified DeChambeau as a primary threat this week.

CBS analyst Jim Nantz named DeChambeau as his second favorite to win, right behind Scottie Scheffler. Even Tiger Woods’ legendary former coach, Butch Harmon, who has often been a critic of DeChambeau,  shifted his tone ahead of the 90th Masters.

“I think they have to look at especially DeChambeau as one of the favorites,” Harmon noted. He believes DeChambeau’s ‘heck of a year’ and his ability to win majors make him impossible to count out.

And DeChambeau himself has been candid about his competitive fire and added spark.

“Do I respect him as an individual? 100 percent,” DeChambeau said of Rory McIlroy. “Do I want to beat him every time I see him? Absolutely. There’s no question about it… I want to just absolutely beat the living you-know-what out of him.”

Now, as things settle and the tournament moves forward, there is a strong expectation that the two-time U.S. Open champion will find his momentum and surge through the remainder of Round 1.