Rick Shiels has revealed what really shocked him about the YouTube video Bryson DeChambeau made with Donald Trump, in which the pair took on one of his Break 50 challenges.
Few players have seen a turnaround bigger than Bryson DeChambeau in recent years, with the American proving to be the darling of the Pinehurst crowd as he won the US Open in June – and you have to say that his YouTube channel has probably been a key reason behind why he is now so popular.
DeChambeau has used the platform brilliantly, particularly when it comes to winning fans over. But it is fair to say that he took quite the risk in filming a Break 50 video with former President Donald Trump. There are very few figures in the world who divide opinion quite like Trump.
Everyone with the slightest interest in politics or golf has probably heard a story about how good Trump really is at the sport, so it was hardly surprising that so many were fascinated to see what would happen when DeChambeau and the 78-year-old teamed up.
Rick Shiels reveals what shocked him about Bryson DeChambeau’s video with Donald Trump
In truth, the Republican candidate’s performance surprised many. Many golf fans were left stunned by Trump’s swing.
And speaking on The Rick Shiels Golf Show, Rick Shiels admitted that he was taken aback by what happened when the video went live.
“When I saw him at The Open he told me this was coming and it didn’t surprise me. When I filmed with him last year it was a goal of his to get Donald Trump on the channel. He told me it was happening and he said that it was very difficult to release, there was a lot of politics. This was just after the assassination attempt,” he said.
“When it got realeased I thought this is going to go big. How big it went really, really shocked me. In five days the video has 9.3 million views. It’s the most liked golf Youtube video ever. It was a 56 minute video of him doing a Break 50, which is some ways I feel part of, we came up with the break series really. The fact he’s doing a Break 50 with the President is not something I expected to see in the world of golf.
“It was a very good video. Leaving politics out of it, Donald Trump could really hit it. His putting was the most unusual putting style I have ever seen in my life but he seemed to make it work.
“For a 78 year old man he played some solid, solid golf. Bryson was brilliant with him.”
The major tours are only scratching the surface of what could be possible with YouTube golf
It is a massive moment for YouTube golf, regardless of your political beliefs, and it highlights some of the potential the genre has.
LIV Golf use YouTube for a lot of their coverage over a tournament weekend, and you are, very gradually, seeing more and more from the PGA Tour on the platform. But there is clearly so much more that can be done.
DeChambeau would surely be nowhere near as popular had he not launched his YouTube channel and embraced the format so much over the last few years.
As more and more fans turn away from traditional media as they consume their golf coverage, the tour which manages to find the winning formula on YouTube is surely going to stand a great chance of seizing the initiative in golf’s civil war.
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