How big-hitting DeChambeau is having a blast... just like Arnie

ARNOLD PALMER revolutionised golf in the 1960s by thrashing the ball, finding it and smashing it again. How the great man would have loved Bryson DeChambeau and the excitement he brought to arnie’s beloved Bay Hill over the weekend. How do you come up with an encore after electrifying the sport on saturday, with a drive that carried 350 yards over water and settled just 60 yards from the green at the 555-yard par-five sixth hole, that sweeps to the left all around a water hazard? Why, you repeat the feat on sunday, of course. What a moment this was, and lee Westwood helped to make it after hitting his drive on the conventional line to finish just the 168 yards behind his playing partner. Westwood threw his arms into the air when his ball found dry land, emulating DeChambeau’s reaction on saturday. Just to show there will always be more than one way to play this game, Westwood ended up walking off the green with a birdie four to match DeChambeau’s. This arnold Palmer invitational is sponsored by Mastercard and here were 15 minutes of action that really were priceless. Of course, on such a dangerous risk-reward par five, there had to be a fall guy and it turned out to be rory Mcilroy, alas, who put not one but two balls into the water to end his own hopes of victory. Did he aim a little more to the left off the tee following DeChambeau’s heroics in the third round? You could tell by his body language that the northern irishman knew both drives were in trouble when they were in the air. ‘Go! Go!’ he urged, to no avail on both occasions. ‘i better aim a little more to the right,’ he said ruefully to his caddie Harry Diamond, as he struck a third from the tee, his fifth shot in all. Maddeningly for Mcilroy, the conservative policy worked well, as he struck a wonderful approach to six feet and rolled in the putt. an eagle, of sorts, but a double bogey on the card. The disappointment was palpable, as he dropped more shots thereafter. His 16-month wait for a win goes on, as he heads to this week’s Players Championship, an event he won when it was last completed in 2019. at the top of the leaderboard, Westwood began the day with a one-stroke lead over DeChambeau (left). The remarkable englishman will celebrate his 48th birthday next month and was attempting to become the oldest man to win a PGA Tour event for 40 years. Westwood began well, stretching his lead to two strokes after the us Open champion was all over the place at the difficult opening hole to drop a shot. a Westwood bogey at the third was followed by a DeChambeau birdie at the fourth to square matters. The american edged ahead following a poor Westwood shot at the seventh. naturally, it was not just a two-man race for the title. Two groups ahead, Jordan spieth was playing his own unique version of the game to stay in contention at two shots behind heading into the back nine, with Canadian Corey Conners three back. With a devilish wind adding to the difficulty, the stage was set for an enthralling finish.