The golf world wasn’t ready when Bryson DeChambeau hit fans with a bold reveal about Scottie Scheffler not being good enough in college. “I played with him a lot in college, and he was good but not that good. I beat him quite a bit”, said DeChambeau at The Open, who played for SMU and often crossed paths with Scheffler at the University of Texas. As the dust settled on the admission, one outspoken analyst, who isn’t that big of a fan of LIV, wasn’t about to let the remark slide.
“Scotty’s a really smart guy. He went to the same university I did….And the business school there is one of the toughest, one of the most rigorous business schools, uh, in the United States.” Brandel Chamblee said on the Indo Sport podcast, coming to Scheffler’s defense, who took a finance degree in 2018, after Bryson DeChambeau’s college jab. Chamblee knows the grind as a fellow University of Texas alum. UT Austin is known for tough programs, especially in business and computer science, and the strict grading system doesn’t make things any easier.
Chamblee continued and revealed what he believed was the real reason Scottie might not have stood out in college. “He comes from a very intellectual family, a very high-achieving business world family. And he put a lot of emphasis on studying hard at school. And maybe that’s why he wasn’t so successful, relatively speaking, at golf in school… because he was there to study,” said Chamblee, taking a dig at Bryson.
Scheffler grew up in a house where education mattered. His mom worked at a law firm and climbed to a top position. Golf was always the goal, but school came first. He was expected to hit the books as hard as he hit the range. Managing both wasn’t easy, and that might explain why he wasn’t dominating leaderboards back then. Not only did Chamblee defend Scheffler, but he also gave him a kind of credit only a few ever get.
“It’s no coincidence that the greatest players of all time, like Jack and Ben Hogan and Tiger Woods, were not only those who had the most control with their irons, but they also played with the greatest amount of discipline,” said Chamblee, putting Scottie in the same league as the most focused and sharp minds in the game.
Ben Hogan was known for his ball-striking, but more than that, he treated every round like a puzzle. He’d spend hours on the range, hitting thousands of balls just to get it right, and talking about Tiger Woods‘s discipline, which is on another level. He won the 2008 U.S. Open playing with an injured knee, something you can’t do without complete mental focus.
That same discipline runs through Scottie’s game, too. At the 2024 Players Championship, he came from five shots back and never rushed a thing. He stuck to his plan, stayed in the moment, and pulled it off. As per Chamblee, it’s different eras but the same mindset. Now, Bryson did put Scottie in a bit of a bad light, no doubt about that. But to be fair, he did say a few nice things too.
Bryson DeChambeau had much more to say about Scottie Scheffler
Sure, Bryson’s jab made noise, but what didn’t was the praise he had for Scottie. “He’s stepped up his game for sure… It’s really impressive to watch,” he said. “Scottie’s in a league of his own right now. He’s setting a benchmark we all want to aspire to be at.” That’s not a throwaway compliment. Coming from someone as competitive as Bryson, it’s a real nod. He even admitted, “I’ve got to work a lot harder on my game.”
And it wasn’t just talk. After Scottie’s recent win at The Open, where he went steady as ever to grab another big one, Bryson was still generous with his words even though he finished tied for 10th. The jab may have caught attention, but the respect behind it didn’t. In the end, it seems the LIV golfer’s intention wasn’t to dismiss Scottie but to highlight just how seriously he takes his success.
That kind of respect was shown at the 2025 PGA Championship. Bryson had a hot start and looked in real contention, but when Scottie pulled away to win his third major, the 2x US Open winner accepted defeat in grace. “Gotta tip the cap to Scottie,” he said, words that reflect the kind of acknowledgment often buried under the louder headlines.
With the Ryder Cup just around the corner, both Bryson and Scottie will soon be wearing the same colors. One’s the power hitter, the other’s the steady hand—and together, they’ll be chasing one goal. Whatever the past, whatever the jabs, Team USA’s going to be a sight to watch.
The post Bryson DeChambeau Always Beat Scottie Scheffler in College Due to a Habit PGA Tour Pro Was Unwilling to Sacrifice appeared first on EssentiallySports.
