LIV Golf arrived in South Africa. Then came South Africa

JOHANNESBURG – It wasn’t so much that Bryson DeChambeau was signing autographs until his neck hurt on Thursday evening. It is that he had promised that he would do it.

After taking part in the first round at LIV South Africa, DeChambeau entered the media center for a press conference and announced that he would sign every last fan. When he left the press center, more than 30 minutes later, the crowd was still waiting. Children poke their heads through the gaps in the fence. The men climbed onto the platform to approach him.

DeChambeau loves signing — “it re-energizes him,” he says — but this session was remarkable what he was signing. Gloves, hats, flags – sure. But the umbrellas also led the way. An umbrella case. Backpacks. Even the shoes from the fans were hopping on one leg, and the shirts from the sweaty bras were squeezed between the fully clothed.

DeChambeau knows exactly how pro-golf event promotion works. All competitions promises to be great. Some offer headliner courses; others include a loaded field. Some sell a large number of tickets; others are sung endlessly. . . but still a flop.

LIV events have worked in some areas, and not so well in others. LIV organizers learned that four years ago. For months they have been marketing their first African event as something special, something different, but you never know. This is LIV’s third tournament in three weeks. Most of the players flew west to Hong Kong, then west to Singapore, and then further west to Africa. When the church closes, the westward migration will continue, to America. The Masters is 13 days away.

But LIV has been rolling this week based on ticket demand. Since the event was announced in July, ticket sales have rivaled the much-loved LIV event in Australia. The league then adds a surprise bonus 18 holes to its tournaments, meaning it can sell another full day of tickets. And they sell. This week LIV released more tickets for the South African stop, and the league says it has moved 90,000.

Attendance figures will not be released until the end of the week, but on Thursday the grounds of the Club in Steyn City were empty. There were fans after DeChambeau’s round elbowing each other to get a closer look at LIV’s biggest star. And the fans in time DeChambeau’s circle chases him after a fiery drive, shoving the phone into his hands and begging him to take a selfie. Thousands of spectators turned out to walk all 18 holes of this hilly course with DeChambeau and another big tournament this week: Louis Oosthuizen, who is the captain of the entire South African Watchmen team.

“Charles and I [Schwartzel] I just stood there talking a little, and I was there watching his tee shot,” said Oosthuizen after the round. I put on my glasses because I feel proud, Charl just said he feels the same way.”

Added Schwartzel, who played in the team before Oosthuizen: “There are a few moments in your career when your hair stands up and you get these needles in your body. [on the first tee]it suddenly became so loud, I started to cry. I was saying, Wow, I need to shoot but I’m busy crying.”

His colleague, Dean Burmester, said the same during an interview. His fourth teammate, Branden Grace, on the other hand, came out on top. As a quartet, the South Africans led the single-team competition. Their general manager, Richard Glover, has worked in sports in this great country for over 15 years. He promised people only one thing if the Southern Guards won the team event.

It’s the biggest party they’ve ever seen.