A few months ago, there were several questions about whether Bryson DeChambeau would be in the Ryder Cup. Now, after he is in, a new concern has emerged just days ahead of the event about who will be paired with the LIV star. DeChambeau’s unorthodox style and data-driven approach make him a challenging partner, and according to one insider, captain Keegan Bradley may be ignoring those concerns — a move that could prove costly to the team.

On the September 16 episode of GOLF’s Subpar podcast, hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz were joined by 3-time PGA Tour winner Johnson Wagner, who suggested that Bradley may be disregarding mounting concerns about the complexities of finding a partner for Bryson DeChambeau. “Man, I talked to Webb Simpson out at Quail last week, and he said they’re going to play Bryson as much as possible,” Wagner began. “But… it seems risky to trot him out there in that first session. He hasn’t played a tournament for a while. I think he’s going to be such an awkward fit partner-wise,” Wagner added, raising one particular concern.

Johnson Wagner added that the Ryder Cup’s format makes the issue of ball pairing and chemistry all the more critical, and with someone like DeChambeau, who is very particular about his stats, things only get harder. The 45-year-old added, “I mean, I thought it was going to be Cam Young just because they played the same ball, but I’ve heard that since Cam Young won Wyndham, uh, with the ball that Bryson has been playing, that one of them has switched away from it. So, I don’t know that there’s just a ball fit ‘cuz we all know as particular as Bryson is about his spin rates and his launch angle and all that stuff, he’s not going to be the kind of guy that’s going to switch and play a spinnier or a less spinny golf ball just to, you know, make it easier for his partner.”

The Ryder Cup’s Friday and Saturday schedule begins with foursomes in the morning and fourballs in the afternoon. In foursomes (alternate shot), two players share one ball, making it a crucial factor to choose the right pairings. Initially, the idea of Cameron Young being paired with DeChambeau was doing the rounds because the two play with the same ball -the Titleist Pro V1x Double Dot (Prototype).

But as Wagner indicated, there are rumors that one of them has made the switch to a different ball now, and if that player is Young, then he will have a hard time convincing DeChambeau to play a different ball in the alternate shot format. While the “one ball rule” was removed in 2006, whichever ball is teed off on a hole must be used for its entirety — a rule that doesn’t sound restrictive until you try to pair someone with Bryson DeChambeau.

And not just with Young, but if DeChambeau were to even play with anyone else, it is highly unlikely that he would be the one willing to make a switch to a different ball, given that he is very particular about getting his statistics right. And that raises another question of whether Bradley would make the mistake of picking him in the alternate shot format. Making the wrong choice could prove costly for Team USA.

That level of precision in his game, and his reluctance to compromise, stems from an obsessive focus on equipment, especially the golf ball, which is exactly why DeChambeau’s recent switch to Titleist’s Double Dot prototype has drawn so much attention.

How Titleist’s Double Dot prototype became a choice for Bryson DeChambeau

Before DeChambeau, Cameron Young made the switch to the Titleist prototype ball ahead of the 2025 Wyndham Championship during a practice round. The performance of the ball impressed him so much that he switched to it and eventually won the tournament. “I think it definitely contributed to some of the good play this week,” Young confessed after securing his first PGA Tour title. His stats were proof of the same — he led the field in strokes gained, he drove it nearly 333 yards on average, ranked top 5 in scrambling, and also hit 79% GIR. 

Around the same time, Bryson DeChambeau also put the same ball to the test at LIV Golf Chicago. He hinted at the 2025 Open that he was testing out a new golf ball and wanted to switch from the Pro V1x Left Dash that he used to win the 2024 U.S Open. “I need help out here. I hit it way too high. I’ve tried to lower my flight, but I compress down on it really hard and I spin it like crazy, and then on my wedges, I don’t spin it,” he said that week. Then, at LIV Golf Chicago, DeChambeau told GOLF’s Johnny Wunder that the Titleist Double Dot prototype was doing wonders for him, flying “20-30 feet lower with each club” and “also seeing less spin with the golf ball.” That performance boost was enough for the 32-year-old to make the switch official.

But while the ball may be working wonders for him, it complicates everything when it comes to team formats like the Ryder Cup. Unlike Young, who’s already shown he can adapt the ball into his all-around game and win, DeChambeau’s setup is still highly specialized. And if Keegan Bradley’s apparent decision to play DeChambeau “as much as possible” comes true, then it may be a disjointed start for Team USA, especially in a format where Team Europe crushed the Americans 4-0 in the opening foursomes in 2023.