LIV GOLF REVIEW
Bryson DeChambeau.
BRYSON! BRYSON! W HATEVER YOUR opinion on the concept of LIV Golf, good or bad, having one of their tour- naments played in South Africa has helped stimulate the game here. LIV Golf experience was a supercharged stimulant for SA golf fans. BY STUART MCLEAN stars at Steyn City excited every young person who has the slightest interest in golf. And older ones too.
ment to children aged 16 and under, if accompanied by an adult, not just under 12s. It’s an expensive ticket, and we need teenagers to be there too. Hosting big tournaments in this country is important for the growth of golf, yet until LIV got involved here, we had forgotten that fundamental principle. We used to be good at that. We had the launch of the Million Dollar at Sun City in 1981, we hosted the World Cup of Golf at Erinvale in 1996, and the Presidents Cup at Fancourt in 2003. But since then our sporting nation has been fed an annual diet of bland European Tour and DP World Tour events which have only attracted a small audience of followers. Even the Million Dollar, a roaring success in the 1980s and 1990s, has descended into another DP World Tour outing. Yes, these events are great opportu- nities for our aspiring tour pros, but they don’t excite the masses because
they’re looking at future champions, not rock stars. What did excite them at Steyn City was the presence of the biggest show- man in today’s golf firmament, Bryson DeChambeau. And did he deliver. How fortunate we were to see him at his very best form on his first visit to this country. BRIDGE BUILDER Someone wrote that Bryson “builds bridges to fans,” just as Arnold Palm- er and Tiger Woods used to do, and that bridge became even wider at Steyn City when he fired his golf ball out of a muddy lie in the 18th hole playoff against Jon Rahm. It took off like a missile from 270 metres out, and narrowly cleared the bunkers to run on to the green. Game over. Our fans embraced his victory as much as they would have done for Ernie Els or Gary Player. This was the 55th LIV tournament around the world, so South Africa is a latecomer to the party, and for all the claims of LIV being a form of “exhibi- tion golf,” this event still electrified us. One of the best I’ve attended. The dramatic finish in the rain on Sunday reminded me of major championship moments, not exhibitionism. Bryson produced recovery shots at 16 and 18 in regulation play that showed how much winning the title meant to him. He wasn’t surrendering to Rahm, waiting behind the final green in rapt concentration. The last time I saw him doing that, he was hunting down Rory McIlroy on Sunday of the 2024 US Open at Pinehurst. Bryson was extremely emotional after winning at Steyn City, and I sin- cerely believe he loved his week in South Africa, and our highly support- ive fans. “South Africa was absolutely unbelievable,” he said. “I mean, got to be the best LIV event we’ve ever had.” The turnout of an estimated 100 000 fans over the four days was extraordinary. And bar the odd in- cident, they were extremely well behaved to the players. No one was abused. The Ryder Cup could have done with that environment. Much was made of Gauteng’s ri-
I have a strong feeling that this will fuel a massive increase in play- ing numbers and rounds of golf in the coming years. However, I encourage LIV Golf to extend free entry at the 2027 tourna-
Not only did it attract vast crowds, the like of which we only see at rugby tests, but the presence of LIV’s super
Branden Grace on first tee.
102 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA
GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRICA 103
MARCH/APRIL 2026
MARCH/APRIL 2026
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