Photo by Joe Giddens/PA Images via Getty Images
DeChambeau was trying to get a perspective into how a blind golfer plays the game he loves. Clearly, that point was missed by the golf publication.
Bryson DeChambeau is no stranger to getting picked on by the media and golf fans alike. The latest situation, though, will leave a bad taste in anyone’s mouth.
Golf.com’s Twitter account posted a photo of DeChambeau wearing some curious-looking glasses with “Presented without comment” as the caption. Only after multiple commenters called the publication “insensitive” did they delete the tweet.
Little did they know, those glasses were part of a demonstration.
He wasn’t cooking up his latest science experiment by working with the England & Wales Blind Golf in a charity event.
DeChambeau wore those glasses to understand better how blind or vision-impaired golfers play the game. This subject is close to DeChambeau because his late father lost his eyesight due to diabetes, per Golfwrx.com.
“It’s easy for many to mock and think this will never happen to them, but every day 25 people in the U.K. start to lose their sight, and the statistics are higher across the world,” a representative of the England & Wales Blind and International Blind Golf said. “Many golfers give up the game because they no longer can see the flight of the ball. Yet golf has saved many blind people’s lives by giving them a goal and bringing people together.”
A simple search by the website staff would have found this inspirational story. They would have the needed context into what the 10-time PGA Tour winner was doing.
He wasn’t trying to get attention or test a new golf gadget. The former U.S. Open champion was raising awareness about a cause that has directly affected him and his family.
Taking a moment to think before tweeting is something all of us in today’s society should do. DeChambeau has been the butt of jokes for a long time, but there is no denying how much he gives back and tries to grow the game.
Savannah Leigh Richardson is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow her on Twitter @SportsGirlSL and on Instagram @savannah_leigh_sports for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
