LIV Golf’s inaugural event in South Africa defied expectations with over 100,000 attendees and Bryson DeChambeau’s genuine fan engagement, proving its success and promising a return next year. Picture: LIV Golf
Image: LIV Golf
When LIV Golf first announced it was coming to South Africa, I was sceptical about how well the Saudi-funded tournament would be received.
However, even before the tournament drew close, ticket sales started flying and were sold out well before the start of the event at The Club at Steyn City last week.
In total, over 100,000 spectators attended the event and there’s no question that eventual champion Bryson DeChambeau was the most popular player in the field even though he was an American playing in the Rainbow Nation. The SA quartet of Louis Oosthuizen, Charl Schwartzel, Dean Burmester and Branden Grace - though they gave it their best - could not hold a candle to the draw DeChambeau created.
I would never have predicted the scenes we witnessed over the four days of the inaugural hosting of the tournament - which will be coming back to the exclusive estate next year.
What struck me though, was that DeChambeau was fully committed to giving back to his adoring fans every single day.
On day one he signed autographs for 27 minutes after his post-round media obligations had been fulfilled.
He continued that over the next three days, and even after his trophy presentation DeChambeau was still there signing autographs and taking selfies with fans over two hours after he holed the winning putt on the first playoff hole to defeat Jon Rahm.
Earlier in the week, DeChambeau said interacting with the fans energised him— and that might sound like a stretch after a five-hour round of golf and a press conference.
Yet the American was being completely genuine.
I came to Steyn City last week with my reservations about LIV Golf and what it can do to really grow the game in South Africa, and I was also not a fan of DeChambeau either.
Both of those things have changed.
* The views expressed are not necessarily the views of IOL or Independent Media.
** JOIN THE CONVERSATION: Send us an email with your comments, thoughts or responses to [email protected]. Letters should be a maximum of 500 words, and may be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Submissions should include a contact number and physical address (not for publication).