Bryson DeChambeau gets COVID-19 test in middle of Masters

Based on his claim that Augusta National is a par-67 to him as opposed to 72, Bryson DeChambeau reached the halfway stage in the 84th Masters sitting on 10-over-par.

Bryson DeChambeau plays his shot from the 18th tee during the second round of the Masters at Augusta National/ Jamie Squire/Getty Images

That wasn't in the US Open's meticulous planning for this week and neither was a COVID-19 scare.

After scraping into the final two rounds by the skin of his teeth following a bogey-bogey finish to the second circuit, the 27-year-old said he'd been feeling "dizzy" on Thursday night and into Friday, so got himself checked out just in case.

“Not good, to say the least," said DeChambeau of his play over the first two rounds, having come into the final men's major of the year full of confidence after his impressive six-shot success in the US Open at Winged Foot in September.

"I was feeling a little weird on Thursday night, came out yesterday and was fine for the most part, but, as I kept going through the round, I started getting a little dizzy. I don't know what was going on, a little something weird.

“So I got checked for COVID last night, and I was fine, nothing. It was negative. I had to do my due diligence. I made sure everybody on my team was negative as well, and they confirmed that.

"So it wasn't that. It's no respiratory anything. It's more of just very dizzy, and I've got a pain in my stomach, so I don't know. Just some weird stuff going on. These past couple days, I've felt really, really odd and just not a hundred per cent."

In his opening 36 holes, the pre-tournament favourite had run a double-bogey 7 at the 13th - one of the holes he had expected to overpower this week - in the first circuit before losing a ball at the third, which he also hoped would be easy for him, in taking a triple-bogey 7 in round two.

“Some of that's played into it," he added. "I just feel kind of dull and numb out there, just not fully aware of everything, and making some silly, silly mistakes for sure.

“Every time I'd bend over and come back up, I'd like lose my stance a little bit. So I don't know what's going on. I've got to go and do some blood work and get checked out and figure out what's going on for this off season.

“I'm not good, unfortunately. But it is what it is. I don't know what it is. There's like something in my stomach that's just not doing well."

Whether ill or not, it had been clear early on this week that brawn alone will not be enough to land DeChambeau a Green Jacket. The same goes for Matthew Wolff, another of the game's new wave of big-hitters after he missed the cut on his debut.

It seemed totally bizzare for DeChambeau to say he felt the par for him was five-under, as former Ryder Cup Andrew Coltart was quick to point. "I can’t think of any golfer ever who has come out and said a course is five-under-par for him," said the Scot on Sky Sports Golf.

DeChambeau finished birdie-birdie in his third round for a 69 to jump into a tie for 29th.