It’s become fairly obvious over the course of the summer that golf fans and those who are intrigued by the intersection of sports, politics and large sums of money are interested in talking about LIV Golf and reading about LIV Golf. But, at least to this point, it does not appear as if anyone is really all that interested in attending the Saudi-backed series or streaming their events on YouTube or Facebook.
At LIV’s third event last month at Trump National Golf Club Bedminster, crowds were thin and tickets were selling for just $1 on the secondary market. “Fewer than 1,000 people were concurrently watching the Facebook Live feed for much of the first two rounds this weekend, while LIV Golf’s YouTube channel was at or above 60,000 viewers for much of Saturday’s second round,” via The Washington Post. “On the course, there were far fewer people. Event officials didn’t announce attendance, though most estimates suggested only a few thousand spectators. Tickets sold for $75 per day but could be had on the secondary market for $1 apiece (plus $5.05 in fees via StubHub).”
Things weren’t much better on Sunday during LIV’s final round. “While LIV Golf is generating a lot of headlines so far, it has yet to secure a media deal in the United States and its online numbers have been tiny,” per The Sports Business Journal. “Take the end of July, for example, when it held its third tournament outside New York City. Its YouTube feed on Sunday had an average concurrent feed of just 74,000. CBS’s coverage of the PGA Tour’s Rocket Mortgage Classic on the same day averaged 2.5 million viewers.”
So what do you do when you are literally spending billions on players like fading Phil Mickelson, former world No. 1 Dustin Johnson, ex-U.S. Open champion Bryson DeChambeau and newly signed world No. 2 and 2022 Open Champion Cameron Smith and no one is showing up or tuning in? Publish a how-to guide on enjoying LIV Golf, silly!
That’s exactly what appeared yesterday on the upstart circuit’s website ahead of today’s announcement of the signing of Smith and world No. 19 Joaquin Niemann, Harold Varner III (No. 46), Cameron Tringale (No. 55), Marc Leishman (No. 62) as LIV Golf tries to drum up some buzz for the start of the LIV Golf Invitational Boston at The International on September 2.
Appropriately displayed in all caps, “HOW TO ENJOY A LIV GOLF EVENT” is a 1,133-word primer on partying down while watching former PGA Tour players putt under the watchful gaze of Greg Norman. Some helpful nuggets include:
- “Fans can get up-close to players instead of feeling packed into tight galleries. Music is pumped throughout the host venue. Hence our motto: Golf, But Louder!”
- “Don’t worry: the food options are plentiful, and local. Food trucks provide a wide variety of choices, and local beers are available for those who want to go beyond the standard fare.”
- “You’ll want to be settled in 15 minutes prior to that, as members of the Frog-X Navy Seal Parachute Team skydives onto the course to kick off the action. It’s a great way to kick off each round.”
- “Another helpful tip to enjoy the competition – know the storylines. Plenty of storylines exist inside those ropes each day. If the first three LIV Golf events have shown us, players with major cred are good bets to handle the individual trophy.”
Then there’s the final piece of advice: “It’s been a full day. But a rewarding one. It’s th”
Wow. LIV Golf is so badass they don’t believe in periods or even finishing words. Actually, it is pretty enjoyable. Still, can’t wait to miss it.
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