Bryson DeChambeau reaches quarterfinals at Pro Long Drivers Association World Championship

Update 8:44 p.m. ET After rounds and rounds of multiple sets, once you reach the quarterfinals of the Pro Long Drive World Championships, it’s one-and-done. And a third place finish in his pod of four is what sent Bryson DeChambeau home on Friday.

As the No. 8 seed in the event, he was in the same bracket as favorite Martin Borgmeier. While Justin James won the set, Borgmeier also did enough to beat back the 2020 US Open Champion, who far exceeded expectations this week with a Top 8 finish with the longest hitters in golf.

Update 8:12 p.m. ET Bryson advances! Despite an injury to Ryan Gregnol next to him (who looked like he pulled his groin), DeChambeau focused enough to poke one 394 to advance.

A thrilling comeback for Bryson, but he’ll be an underdog to reach the final four against guys like Martin Borgmeier, who won each of his first four sets today.

Update 8:05 p.m. ET One yard in Set 4 for DeChambeau might make a huge difference.

Not getting third because of Zack Holton hitting 397 with his last ball cost Bryson 50 points he might desperately need. Right now he’s in ninth place, and not all golfers have had their fourth set yet.

This is going to be close for DeChambeau to reach the last eight, but a win in the last set would likely seal him a spot to advance.

Update 7:50 p.m. ET Imagine hitting a golf ball over 400 yards, and NOT winning.

That’s what happened to DeChambeau, who finishes behind the last ball of up-and-coming long drive competitor Colton Casto, who smoked his last drive for 420.

That’s another second place for DeChambeau, but you get 200 points for a set win, 100 for second place, 50 for third, and 25 for fourth. It’s a lot easier to advance if you win one of the five sets available in this round, and Bryson will have two more opportunities.

Update 7:35 p.m. ET You know the competition has stepped up if you’re hitting 386, but are only third in your pod of four. Still plenty of time, but DeChambeau has some work to do to reach the Elite Eight.

Update 7:10 p.m. ET We are underway in Mesquite, and that was as good a set as we’ve seen all week. DeChambeau was originally credited with 417 yards, but then back to 416 after a scoreboard correction. We think he finished second in this set, and the step-up in competition today is going to make this a real challenge for the Ryder Cup participant.

Today is the final day of competition in the Pro Long Drivers Association World Championship, and Bryson DeChambeau has made Friday’s action as one of the 16 longest hitters of a golf ball in the world.

After three days of competition, the event will crown a champion today. Here’s the format:

16 players will play down to eight beginning at 6:45 p.m. ET today. From there the top 8 finishers will be reseeded into two groups of four. The top two from each of those groups will then move on to a final group of four. And then the top two finishers from the final group face off head-to-head match for the World Championship.

This means players will be hitting more balls than usual. So far each day competitors have hit five sets of six balls each, with 2.5 minutes given to hit all six balls. DeChambeau did appear to tire a bit yesterday, uncharacteristically hitting his first four shots OB and finishing last in his final set, the only time that happened during this week of play. We’ll see if that’s a factor today.

You can watch the event at the Pro Long Drivers Association Youtube channel, and we’ll be back here with live updates from Mesquite, Nevada as the final day of competition begins.