Bryson DeChambeau is now a two-time Major champion having secured his second US Open title at Pinehurst No. 2 and he has done so by taking an unorthodox approach not only to his golf swing but also the equipment he uses.
Many of the world’s best golfers tinker with equipment from time to time but none do it quite to the scale of DeChambeau. Golf gear nerds can fully geek out over the ‘golfing scientist's’ completely unique approach to equipment and the methods in which he has employed over the years.
From one length irons to a side-saddle putting stroke, we deep-dive into the unique golf equipment Bryson DeChambeau has used from his US Amateur win at Olympia Fields in 2015, up to the present day.
2015: US Amateur Champion
Bryson DeChambeau burst into the spotlight after becoming only the fifth player in history to win both the US Amateur title and NCAA Division 1 individual title in the same year.
While his iconic flat cap initially got people talking, it was his unique bag setup that had golf fans really paying attention.
He used custom wedges and irons from Edel golf that were all the same length, a concept rarely seen before. Bryson’s irons are very specifically built alongside David Edel to play at the length of 37.5 inches long - the length of a standard 6 iron. He did this in order to keep his posture identical between clubs, allowing him to produce a more repetitive golf swing.
DeChambeau was using a TaylorMade Aeroburner fairway wood and a TaylorMade SLDR driver back in 2015 to win his US Amateur title, both of which were fitted with Oban Kiyoshi shafts.
Alongside his single length irons and wedges he started using Jumbo Max XL grips, which are now known as some of the best golf grips on the market. DeChambeau initially made the switch to larger grips when he changed to single length irons to get his hands and shaft more upright at address, improving the plane of his swing.
2016: Signing With Cobra/Puma
In 2016 Bryson DeChambeau put pen to paper in a deal to play Cobra golf clubs and wear Puma apparel.
While DeChambeau kept some of his custom Edel forged prototype irons (6-9) he added in two Cobra Fly-Z+ irons (3 and 5). The American switched out his Edel wedges and put some Cobra King wedges in play (50°, 55°,60°) all at his customary 37.5 inch length.
Despite keeping the same Edel custom putter he had gamed for the previous season as an amateur, DeChambeau changed up the top end of the bag, adding the Cobra King F6+ driver and Cobra King F6 fairway wood. He did however remain in the same Oban Kiyoshi shafts in 70g X-stiff both in 3-wood and driver.
2017: First PGA Tour Win And Side-Saddle Experiment
Towards the back end of 2016 and early into 2017 DeChambeau started toying with the idea of putting with the side-saddle method. This technique was famously used by Sam Snead in 1960 and had rarely been seen on tour since. This putting method did require a change in putter from his customary Edel blade as he searched for a model that complied with the USGA conforming list.
As is evident through his equipment, Bryson is no stranger to trying anything in order to get one percent better and despite using it at Torrey Pines and Pebble Beach in 2017, Bryson ditched the method to go back to a more conventional putting style soon after.
As the new Cobra King LTD Pro driver and woods were released, DeChambeau put them in play but it was the full new set of Cobra King Forged One Length irons that caught the attention of golf fans in 2017.
Bryson spent multiple weeks with the Cobra R&D team to help them engineer these irons into his bag and Cobra went on to release these irons at retail later in the year.
2018: Switching Back To Armlock
DeChambeau continued his steady rise to stardom in 2018 picking up his second PGA Tour title at The Memorial Tournament. Once again his putter was the topic of conversation as he used a SIK Golf armlock prototype.
This method was adopted by Bryson so he can simply rock his shoulders and try to take any unnecessary wrist or hand movement out of the stroke. At the time SIK golf putters were relatively unheard of but they soon went on to produce some of the best putters money could buy thanks to some really clever Descending Loft and groove technology.
2019: Winning in Dubai
While DeChambeau failed to win on the PGA Tour in 2019, he did take his golfing talent to the Middle East to compete on the DP World Tour where he left victorious after winning the Omega Dubai Desert Classic.
Bryson changed from the Cobra King LTD Pro driver he had been using the previous two seasons and switched to a Cobra King F9 Speedback with a TPT Prototype shaft playing 0.25 inches longer than his previous 45.5 inch driver.
2020: Winning Majors And Chasing Speed
Bryson's fame in the golfing world reached new heights in 2020 as he won his first Major championship, the US Open at Winged Foot, NY.
DeChambeau worked closely with the team at LA Golf to create some custom made graphite shafts that were used throughout the clubs in his bag. DeChambeau to this day uses the same shafts and now is an investor in LA Golf, boasting his signature range of shafts at retail.
The ‘golfing scientist’ turned to golfing bodybuilder in 2020, gaining over 50lbs in a short stint of time in a quest for more ball speed and longer distance from the tee.
He felt as though he could bully golf courses with his length but with his new found speed, he had to change his set-up to ensure his gapping of his yardages remained even and consistent.
The 2020 US Open actually saw Bryson put two 3-woods in play with lofts of 11.5° and 13.5° - the latter still 1.5° lower than a traditional fairway wood.
2021: Going Back To 'Old Trusty'
As DeChambeau continued on his pursuit for speed, he actually swapped in and out of multiple Cobra driver heads in order to find one that matched the shot shape and speed he was looking for.
For the most part of the 2021 season, the Cobra LTD Pro driver made its way back into Bryson’s bag alongside his LA Golf Tour AXS Blue 60 X driver shaft.
While the driver changed around a lot, the Cobra Forged One Length irons had been a constant in DeChambeau’s bag.
The big-hitting American did swap out his Cobra King wedges to some custom Artisan Prototype wedges in lofts of 50°,55° and 60° with the first two mentioned playing 3° stronger and the latter 2° strong.
2022: The New Flat Stick
In June 2022 DeChambeau signed with the Saudi Arabian PIF-funded LIV Golf where upon joining he said: “It’s given me a lot more opportunity outside of the game of golf and given me more time with my family and my future family. So for me, that was the decision.”
While it was unclear how this move would work with equipment sponsors, DeChambeau still gamed a bag predominantly full of Cobra golf equipment.
He sported a new Cobra LTD X driver in 7° set at 5° and Cobra Radspeed fairway wood layered with a healthy chunk of lead tape, set at 14°.
Bryson finally moved away from the Forged One Length irons and into a new set of Cobra King Tour MIM One Length irons. These did feature the same LA Golf Rebar proto iron shafts and were once again from 6-iron to pitching wedge all 37.5 inches long.
2022 was also the year DeChambeau retired his SIK Prototype putter and put a new LA Golf Armlock putter in play. The two putters however were nearly identical after it emerged LA Golf had actually acquired SIK Golf and so the same Descending Loft Technology found on the SIK putters was implemented into Bryson’s new flat stick.
2023: Becoming A Free Agent
2023 was certainly a year of change for DeChambeau as his contract with Cobra/Puma ended in 2022 and was not renewed. The American was now a free agent and could play with whatever equipment he desired.
At the top end of the bag, he opted for the TaylorMade Stealth 2 Plus driver. The head was set at 8° and he powered this through the help of a Project X HZRDUS T1100 shaft - the same shaft currently used by another long hitter on tour - Jake Knapp.
With the strong lofted fairway woods Bryson had been gaming in previous seasons, it was no surprise that he swapped out a fairway wood and chose to throw into his bag, the TaylorMade BRNR Mini Driver. This was set at 10° and featured the same shaft as in his Stealth 2 Plus driver.
DeChambeau moved away from Cobra irons for the first time in seven years as he opted to use Ping i230 irons with a G430 Crossover utility iron.
The i230s still had his LA Golf Rebar shafts in although he did use a Project X HZRDUS Black shaft in the Ping Crossover.
Following the introduction of Ping irons, Bryson also opted to use Ping Glide 4.0 wedges in 46° (set at 45°), 50° and 60°.
This was a particularly interesting choice due to him previously only playing bladed wedges rather than any form of cavity backed wedge that make up some of the most forgiving wedges.
Having used either a Bridgestone B330-S or Bridgestone Tour B X golf ball for the previous seven years, Bryson also made the leap in switching to a Titleist Pro V1x Left Dash golf ball.
While both are considered some of the best golf balls money can buy, the Left Dash is a high launching, low spinning ball that would certainly help assist Bryson in chasing distance gains while also keeping the spin relatively low.
2024: Long Drive Heads and 3D Printed Irons
Bryson has had an incredible year so far after finishing T-6 at the Masters, 2nd at The PGA Championship and now winning his second US Open Championship. His win at Pinehurst sees him move back into the top 10 in the world for two years.
The American contributes a lot of his success down to having reliable equipment in his bag that he can trust to perform exactly how he wants.
DeChambeau has been using a Krank Formula Fire Pro driver, set at 5° so far this year. The brand is relatively unknown to the majority of the golfing world but are a big name within the Long Drive space.
Bryson must have taken a liking to the product after competing himself in the World Long Drive a few years back and after finding one that complies with the USGA regulations, he’s put it in play this year, along with the Krank fairway wood.
Continuing with the theme of relatively unknown brands, DeChambeau made headlines once again this year when he switched into Avoda Protoype 3D printed irons.
These irons look like a fairly traditional blade from the back but actually feature face-bulging technology. This is a curvature of the face, similar to what we see on many of the best golf drivers, this curved face allows for ‘gear effect’ to take place and is designed to reduce left-to-right dispersion.
The now two-time major champion has persisted with Ping Glide 4.0 wedges and his iconic LA Golf Armlock putter, as well as the Titleist Pro V1x Left Dash golf ball for the 2024 season and judging by how it’s played out so far, perhaps we can expect fewer changes for the foreseeable future.
Although with Bryson DeChambeau's golf bag, you can never rule it out!
