Rahm predicts birdie barrage as Steyn City aims to be ‘DeChambeau-proof’

By David Isaacson

Spanish golf star Jon Rahm is predicting low scoring at the LIV Golf event at Steyn City this week, but the South African hosts reckon they’ve made the course “DeChambeau-proof” with thick kikuyu rough in the right places to make the big hitters think twice.

Dean Burmester said he and Branden Grace played a few holes on Monday, and they came unstuck in the long stuff just off the par-five 10th fairway.

“I hit it a foot into the rough on 10, and Branden was a yard into the rough — we’re both carrying seven woods this week because of the rough, and neither of us had a chance of getting it anywhere near that green,” said Burmester, one of the four members of the Southern Guards team captained by Louis Oosthuizen.

“That fairway has been narrowed into, I think, 17 yards wide at where the driver’s going to pitch, and that was Louis’s goal. He wanted to give 57 guys [the full LIV field] a chance to win this tournament.

“You don’t want to take 30% of the field out,” added Burmester, the runner-up at the 2022 Steyn City Championship won by Shaun Norris on 25 under par.

Grace believed the kikuyu could take some getting used to. “We grew up with kikuyu grass. The rest of the field’s probably never even seen it the way that we know it.”

Charl Schwartzel said he and Oosthuizen had identified the need to test players’ skills after playing Steyn City some time ago.

“I spoke to Louis, and we both played the Million Dollar, the Nedbank [at Sun City], when it was a 12-man field… where the rough was very long. Then, single digits would win, and there would be more emphasis on quality golf shots.

“The way the [Steyn City] course was, it was just for bombers, so you could just hit it anywhere, and guys would get away with it, so that was the first thing to try to stop. At least make the guys think, reward quality golf shots.”

Schwartzel, who last played the course early in the year, expected it to be challenging. “I’m sure it’s going to be nice and juicy, and there’s going to be an emphasis on hitting fairways.

“Bryson [DeChambeau] hasn’t felt thick kikuyu grass yet. He’s going to learn quickly.”

He also joked about trying to limit the big-hitting American, who won the LIV Singapore event last Sunday. “It’s a tough one because if we make it DeChambeau-proof, we actually make it Burmester-proof too. He hits it just as far.”

The LIV tour has seen some lower winning totals since switching to 72-hole formats this year, with Australian Elvis Smylie winning in Riyadh on 24 under par and Rahm and Anthony Kim winning Hong Kong and Adelaide, respectively, on 23 under par.

Smylie’s all-Australian Ripper outfit, captained by Cameron Smith, won Riyadh with a combined 69 under par.

Greens seem to be soft. It’s going to be tricky to get them as firm as they probably want to, but that combination essentially gives the people that hit it furthest an advantage.

—  Jon Rahm

Rahm, one of the big hitters on tour, was expecting Steyn City to produce low scoring, even with the kikuyu.

“Off the tee you’re not going to expect a lot of roll; you can probably be aggressive. There’s quite a bit of margin of error off the tee — right? — so hitting it long is going to be an advantage.

“Greens seem to be soft. It’s going to be tricky to get them as firm as they probably want to, but that combination essentially gives the people that hit it furthest an advantage.

“When you give some of the longest hitters in the world free rein off the tee, you’re going to see a lot of birdies, and I think that’s what’s going to happen.

“With the fantastic facilities they have here and the crew working on the course, if they can get it up to speed and firm, it might change a little bit. But as of now I think you’re going to have to expect some low scores.”

Grace, however, seemed confident the greens would get firmer.

“It’s going to get firmer, faster, better.”