Indian golf fans in for a treat when Bryson DeChambeau comes to Gurugram

Munjal continues to be a central figure in world golf: last week he teed it up with Rory McIlroy at the pro-am of the DP World Tour’s Dubai Desert Classic. Later, while speaking to the press, the Irishman was bullish on the sport’s prospects in India, “…the Indian market is a very important market for golf. You look at what’s happening next week with the International Series, you’ve got Bryson (DeChambeau) and a lot of those guys going over to play."

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McIlroy also referred to reports of a new DP World Tour event in India later this year. “India is a country I’ve always wanted to visit. I’ve never been there before. Obviously, I know that there are discussions ongoing about an event that may be played later in the year…But I think to say anything else at this point would be a little premature…whether that’s this year or sometime down the line. But it’s certainly something that I want to do," he said.

This is different. A number of LIV Golf Tour players are expected to be in the field, but the primary draw is going to be DeChambeau—arguably the best, but unquestionably the most popular golfer in the world today. In all, 15 LIV Golf members and nine Asian Tour winners from the last season will be seen in action.

Notables to watch out for include Englishman Paul Casey, Anirban Lahiri, Joaquin Niemann, Abraham Ancer and the enigmatic Harold Varner III. Talented as these players are, the limelight is unlikely to wander from DeChambeau. It’s a tantalising prospect for Indian fans, who, over the years, have seen so many great players trip and get their teeth knocked in by this punishing golf course.

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If DeChambeau can tame DLF G&CC, it won’t matter where he finishes up in the final tally. Goes without saying that the wily greenskeepers on that course have already considered and are prepping the course to defend itself against precisely that possibility. Either way, it’s going to be a fascinating contest, and not one to be missed if you’re a golf fan.

The International Series isn’t a LIV Golf event, but rather a LIV Golf Tour-backed 10-event tourney on the Asian Tour. Each event has a minimum purse of $2 million, and the field is assembled from a pool of LIV Golf members, Asian Tour players, top-ranked amateurs and a few local players.

The series provides a path for aspiring pros to make their way into the lucrative LIV Golf league: while the season-ending rankings champion secures a guaranteed spot, other top finishers get a chance to earn their place through a season ending LIV Golf Promotions event. In 2022, the Asian Tour decided to throw in its lot with LIV Golf; given the infusion of funds ($300 million) by LIV and participation by star players in the International Series, the move appears to have worked out well.

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On the flip side, the global scope of the 10 events gives credence to LIV’s stature as a truly international tour, not to mention the precious world rankings points its members can accrue on the International Series.

Away from these storied venues around the world, a much more localised golf event format has debuted across the world this month. This will be the year that Tiger Woods’ much-hyped Tiger Golf League (TGL) will swing into action.

In case you missed the opening event this month, the TGL, is, essentially, a stadium-enclosed, mixed—virtual and on-ground—sport in which players hit shots to a giant six-storey high simulator screen while short game approaches and putts are executed on a dynamic rotating green that recalibrates to different slopes and terrain. The idea is to merge traditional golf with advanced technology to create a dynamic, fast-paced, and spectator-friendly experience.

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This is golf made for television: games take no longer than two hours, ideal for prime time television. The whole arena ambience, replete with the music, lighting, and crowds is a take on American-style sports events, that have never been within golf’s ambit. The highlights package from the first event wasn’t particularly exciting, but these are young days for the league.

One thing is clear though; whether it’s LIV golf’s unorthodox format and event ambience, TGL’s focus on a younger gaming audience, DeChambeau’s wildly popular YouTube channel content, or the surging popularity of golf influencers—golf is turning a page toward becoming a spectator sport again. It’s a full circle from the time that players like Jack Nicklaus and Arnold Palmer would go out of their way to interact and connect with fans, to entitled modern players with little concern for nurturing the sport.

DeChambeau has showed the way with his unpretentious, candid and relatable content that’s got millions of viewers hooked to the channel. For the pivotal role that television rights have played in bank-rolling professional golf in the past, the future looks very different. We’ll get a taste of it next week, when golf fans will converge to watch, not a tournament, on any particular tour, but an individual. With his booming drives, and unabashedly playing to the gallery, DeChambeau with his trademark swagger will take on the DLF G&CC. What a match that promises to be.

Meraj Shah is a Delhi-based writer, golfer and television producer.

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