Embracing Bryson DeChambeau’s Fan Engagement

Bryson DeChambeau’s YouTube page posted a video of someone hitting golf balls over his house, as he did in November for many days. But this time, the video wasn’t Bryson. DeChambeau brought in a fan named Jimmy and offered up $100,000 if he could make the shot in seven hours. Jimmy’s fifth attempt went in. The celebration was as big as you’d expect.

Now, the trend of doing X activity for Y number of days until Z outcome happens is one of many social media insanities that make my blood boil. The obsession to aggregate Bryson’s original attempt was nonsensical. But this latest video was different. The celebration between this fan and Bryson was one of pure joy, a truly entertaining moment that involved one of golf’s most notable names.

I may not be Bryson’s biggest fan, but moments like this prove the value of athletes showing some personality and having free rein. There is a balance that can be struck between the PGA Tour’s hard-line policy on media rights and the Wild West. This is not to say that the Tour’s media restrictions are a valid reason to run off and join the Crushers, that’s a ridiculous excuse. But I hope we can get to a future where Tour players have a little more freedom than they currently do. We should encourage moments like the one between Bryson and Jimmy.

This piece originally appeared in the Fried Egg Golf newsletter. Subscribe for free and receive golf news and insight every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.