Bryson DeChambeau Says He Lost 18 Pounds in 24 Days After Significantly Changing Diet

Bryson DeChambeau held the lead after the opening round of the PGA Championship at Oak Hill Country Club in Rochester, New York, on Thursday with a four-under 66 he attributed partially to his recent slimd-own, per ESPN's Mark Schlabach.

DeChambeau started his new diet, during which he cut out corn, wheat, gluten and dairy while reducing his daily intake to 2,900 calories, last August. In 24 days, he had already lost 18 pounds, he told Schlabach.

"It was crazy," DeChambeau said. "It wasn't fat. It was all water weight. You know how I looked before. I was not skinny."

DeChambeau, who now says he weighs between 210 and 215 pounds, went on a very different journey back in 2020 on his way to winning his first major. DeChambeau returned from golf's COVID-19 shutdown having packed on an extra 50 pounds by eating "up to 5- to 6,000 calories a day," personal trainer Greg Roskopf told ESPN's Bob Harig:

"I've never seen the type of changes on an athlete that he's made in this last six-month period. It's a rare occasion. You'll see these athletes gets bigger, faster and stronger. But a lineman or a linebacker can come into the NFL and in their career gain maybe 10 to 20 pounds. But to see somebody gain 50 pounds and in that time that he's done it is, I mean, kind of unbelievable."

DeChambeau bulked up with the goal of allowing him to hit the ball further. It worked.

Three months after his return to the course, he won the 2020 U.S. Open. For the next several years, he competed in national long drive championships, finishing 20 yards short of first place in 2022.

Now, DeChambeau's outlook is different. He went from being ranked No. 4 in the world as a PGA Tour star in May 2021 to 214th as a LIV Golf member three years later. And instead of focusing on hitting the ball as hard as he can, he is slimming down to conserve energy, Schlabach reported.

The results paid off Thursday. DeChambeau finished the day with six birdies and two bogeys while hitting nine of 14 fairways. He will return to tee off for Round 2 Friday at 2:31 pm ET.