Building Bryson's Bag

No-one in the history of the game has approached his equipment set-up quite like Bryson DeChambeau. This is how and why he does it differently

- Simon Daddow

Tour players can be notoriously tricky to dial into new equipment, but no-one is anywhere near as complex or analytical as US Open champion Bryson DeChambeau. Cobra were convinced DeChambeau was destined for stardom, so they signed him as soon as he turned pro after the Masters in 2016. Ever since, they’ve been on an equipment journey together, exploring every aspect of club performance. Fine-tuning DeChambeau’s gear (including his unusual One Length irons and ever-changing swing speed) has been a mammoth task, yet it’s been just a single step in their journey; a journey that’s far from over, as DeChambeau continues to experiment with new ways of doing things.

One person who’s been at his side throughout the changes is Cobra’s VP of R&D, Tom Olsavsky. The two are continuously talking about different ideas, some of which make it into his bag.

“We gave Bryson a Cobra employee badge when he first signed with us,” Olsavsky tells TG. “It gave him access to anywhere he wanted to go in Cobra’s global HQ. He was scheduled to be with us for two days, but he actually stayed for seven, and he’d have come in on the weekend if we were open! He sat with our engineers and asked all sorts of questions about what we’d learned from certain prototypes and experiments. He’s curious about everything to do with golf, whether that’s the swing, the clubs, the body or how the grass grows. He’s a real student of the game.”