![]() Please, don’t cause us to lose those fans.”Īmong some of the competitors, DeChambeau’s attention brought with it a pang of wariness. “We’ve had more than 500,000 hits on our website. ![]() “We have 18,000 people watching this right now,” he said. For a sport on the brink, a week of nonstop media attention harnessed through one of the game’s biggest personalities has been a blast of oxygen.īefore DeChambeau’s first set on Wednesday, a public address announcer excitedly asked that fans stop trying to connect to the WiFi network that supports the tournament’s live stream. The event has generated much social media attention ever since DeChambeau accepted his invitation, and Golf Channel is back on-site at a long drive event for the first time in two years. Long-drive pro Martin Borgmeier comes over to celebrate: “Thought you’d be good, didn’t know you’d be THAT good.”- James Colgan September 28, 2021Īt the World Championships this week, The Bryson Effect is real. Says he’s working with a whole new equipment setup, including a prototype driver. There’s a lot to come for us.”īryson’s day is done after five heats and a handful of 400-yard drives. What he’s doing for the sport, he showcases that you can use these principles on the golf course, too. “He’s elevating the whole game, and he knows what it takes to be successful in long drive. “What he’s doing is absolutely incredible,” said Martin Borgmeier, a Hulk-sized long driver from Germany who also competes in standard stroke-play tournaments. Soon he was sharing highlights on his social media accounts, tracking data to see how his speed compared to the best in the sport and hosting long drive pros at his Dallas compound. Before long, they were training together, swinging so hard they approached “blacking out.” Through Berkshire, DeChambeau’s exposure to long drive grew, and he began reaching out to other pros on social media. The two hit it off, sharing an affinity for the scientific minutiae of the swing. That energy is largely due to DeChambeau, who threw a charge into both long drive and traditional golf when he saw Berkshire’s unusual swing and decided to reach out for advice. I think we’re on the precipice of a massive resurgence. But I do think we’re on the precipice of a massive resurgence.” So I think it’d be unfair to say they’re villains in the sport. We had something happen to us, two years ago, that was a once-in-a-lifetime thing. “Golf Channel made a mistake dropping us,” he said. PLDA merchandise features his silhouette in follow-through position, and it’s obvious he’s been asked to carry the weight for the future of his sport, despite being just 24. He’s the longest, fastest hitter in the world, and if you’re anywhere within several hundred feet of him at the time of impact, you know why. ![]() ![]() Here, long drive had waited for 30 years for a missionary in the pro game to jumpstart interest in their niche sport, and now he shows up, with long drive on life support? Word also soon trickled out that DeChambeau had forged a relationship with the brightest young star long drive had seen in years - a long-haired, soft-spoken fire-breather named Kyle Berkshire.īerkshire is to long drive what Jordan and Magic were to the NBA. DeChambeau said he’d bulked up in pursuit of speed and, by extension, distance, and that he’d learned by stealing the best practices of long drive pros.Įven with only a few hundred in attendance, the cameras still followed Bryson DeChambeau. He looked like a different person, with a thicker neck and meatier shoulders. Instead, players and a core group of sponsors came together to form the Professional Long Drivers Association - resuscitating the sport with shoestring budgets and grassroots events.Īt about the same time, DeChambeau emerged from the PGA Tour’s pandemic-induced hiatus with stories of 10,000-calorie days, endless protein shakes and intensive workouts - and with 40 pounds of new muscle. Sponsors scattered and the league quickly folded, leaving many to wonder if the sport had a future. The network’s decision was a death knell. In 2020, Golf Channel dropped the World Long Drive Championships at the beginning of the pandemic despite owning a majority stake in what was then called the World Long Drive Tour. The sport that showcases players putting a jolt into golf balls was in desperate need of a jolt itself. Even before this week, it wasn’t hard to see Bryson DeChambeau’s value to the world of long drive. Bryson DeChambeau has been all smiles at the World Long Drive Championships this week. ![]()
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