LIV GOLF SOUTH AFRICA

March 20, 2026

Dean Burmester

The Club at Steyn City

Southern Guards GC

Press Conference

THE MODERATOR: Let's welcome to the media center Dean Burmester, Southern Guards GC. Dean, well played, 7-under 64, tied for low round of the day. Through two rounds, is anyone having more fun than you out there?

DEAN BURMESTER: Man, I sure as hell hope not. I'm having a hell of a lot of fun, I'm not going to lie. It's incredible the reception that we've all got. I'm sure all four of us have got. I walk on every tee box, walking down every fairway to every green, they're all shouting my name. They're all shouting something I can laugh at and just have a good time.

It's hard not to smile out there; I'm not going to lie.

Q. Entering the week, obviously a lot on your plate, a lot on the team's plate as the host team. But now two rounds in with two to go, if you had said this is where you'd be, not only as a team but individually heading into the weekend, how would you feel?

DEAN BURMESTER: I've got to give a lot of credit to the team behind the scenes. They made us do quite a lot of stuff last week prepping for this week, just to make sure we had some time to practice and get some golf in. Obviously with potential thunderstorms and everything, you know never in Johannesburg this time of year. It can be interesting. So they did an amazing job doing that, and gave all of us enough prep really to get out there and get used to the golf course and how far the ball is going and that kind of thing.

Yeah, it looks like it's paid off. I wouldn't have dreamed being where we are right now through two rounds. Me personally, it's amazing, but the team, I think it's the coolest thing ever.

Q. Obviously what happened at the party hole with the Bafana Bafana tee shirt, can you talk about that moment and how it came about?

DEAN BURMESTER: Yeah, obviously, every Friday obviously in South Africa we love supporting our teams. We got the football World Cup coming up and it's Football Friday, so you've got to support your Bafana Bafana. We were lucky enough that they sent us some jerseys, so I thought it would be a really cool idea to kind of put that on.

Then yeah, to hit that kind of golf shot after that is super special. I thought it was honestly halfway in the flight, I was like, I've dreamt about this moment for about 10 days. When it took off and it was on the flag, I was like, please be the right club, please be the right club, and then it just looked so good the whole way. Then unfortunately it didn't spin enough.

That was probably top three moments of my career right there.

Q. You spoke about Bafana Bafana; the last time the country galvanized like this was back in 2010. How incredible has it been to see South Africans to come out and support this event the way they have the last two days?

DEAN BURMESTER: Yeah, all people, big and small, proudly South Africa out there. It's amazing to have that kind of backing and we feel the love. It's so good to see a country once divided join together like that behind sport. I never really understood the Rugby World Cup or the 2010 World Cup before, but bringing LIV Golf here has given us a taste of doing that.

We've had so many people from all walks of life inside these gates having a good time and enjoying not only the golf but now we get to go and watch one of our own, Black Coffee, do something special this evening.

It's a really proud moment to be a South African.

Q. You were involved in pretty much almost helping out with the setup for the golf course ahead of the tournament. What does it take to put together a number like you put together today?

DEAN BURMESTER: Yeah, look, you've got to hit fairways. It's pretty simple. Not only because of the rough but because you could get mud balls in semi-rough and stuff. It's really important to place your ball off the tee. I like playing it a little more aggressive. Luckily I've been driving it okay, so that gives me shorter irons in and that gives me a lot more birdie chances.

But yeah, look, I'm riding a good run of form, so I know that if I give myself enough chances, I'm going to make some birdie putts. That's kind of my strategy is just trying to take down every flag and make as many birdies as I can.

Q. You tipped your cap so many times, I'm worried you might be burning up there.

DEAN BURMESTER: Yeah, I'm not going to lie, I think my D on the back of my head, my tan line, is not going to be so good. It's going to take a while to get rid of that. But I am spraying it, so that is the good news. I am using sun cream, so that's good.

Q. Is there ever a thing you guys do preparation-wise to deal with the unique LIV situation? Music is playing, crowd is going nuts. Do you prepare for that in any way? Are there speakers on the driving range? Have you considered this? You look like you rise to the top like no one else.

DEAN BURMESTER: I've been practicing with earphones in my ears since I was, like, 17 years old, 18 years old, so I've always had music in and around me. Then when all four of us at one stage lived in Jupiter, Florida, and what you do there, you literally have a speaker in your golf cart and you're pumping the music the whole way around. Doesn't matter where you're playing, the music is on, how private the golf course, that happens.

We were all very comfortable when the music was around us, and now we get to add this kind of vibe and this craziness on top of -- I don't even know what songs are playing. To be honest with you, I have no idea what music is -- I don't even know what song my party hole song was today. I tried to listen but I couldn't even hear it. That's how crazy it is.

It's an amazing vibe and atmosphere, and I just want to do everybody proud.

Q. Just to go back to the party hole and you wearing the Bafana jersey and relating football back to golf, do you think had that ball gone in for the hole-in-one, it would have your Tshabalala moment?

DEAN BURMESTER: I sure as hell hope so. I wouldn't have done the same celebration he did. He made it look pretty classy. I think I would have taken all my clothing off and run down the hole. I would have done something a little crazier.

What did Andrei Paulet say the other day? We're going to make it more physical. I figured I'd try and do that.

Yeah, that would have been pretty cool, but to me, that's as good a moment for me.

Q. I'm just curious, why 22?

DEAN BURMESTER: So 22. Two when I was growing up was my favorite number, and then I met my wife, and then two became her favorite number, and then 22 became our favorite number because we're two twos. So we got married on the 22nd of the 11th month, and everything is kind of divisible by two. When I played cricket, I always used to bowl two. I bowled second. I always had two on my jersey, and it became 22 when we became more than one person, so it's a pretty cool sentimental thing.

Q. Did you guys get together at all last night or at least have a moment, the four of you, to kind of just talk about and reflect on the day that happened yesterday?

DEAN BURMESTER: Yeah, so all four of us were in Rhino Ridge at a point there just before we went for physio and kind of our relax time. Yeah, we managed to all four -- I mean, the smile on all of our faces, I think, couldn't have been knocked off by anything. I think if Mike Tyson hit me as hard as he wanted, it wouldn't have knocked it off.

It was just a cool moment to kind of have all four of us reflect on not only us leading after day one, but Charl was obviously really struggling with his back and he was doubtful to even tee off, and then for him to go in and put a round like that at 5-under and help the team like that, that takes real guts and something special.

Feeling the goosebumps, not only there but in and amongst our friends and family and the Rhino Ridge is a special thing.

Q. You made that shot on 17 with basically three shirts on, and I don't want to say anything about your physique, but we don't have washboard abs on stage right now.

DEAN BURMESTER: It's my Men's Health cover.

Q. How did we make a swing with three shirts on, and were you planning to tighten the up fit going on through the week?

DEAN BURMESTER: I'll tell you what, you ever play golf in October in Scotland in the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, I think you'd wear more than three layers there, big guy. You've got to learn how to just dink it around. But yeah, I won't lie, that shirt is a little tight on me.

Q. Yesterday Charl spoke about a magnesium bath, and by the way he made it sound, it sounds like there's only one. How would you react if you walked in and Charl and Louis were sharing the same magnesium bath?

DEAN BURMESTER: I'd jump straight in. That's pretty easy. Sharing is caring.

Q. Obviously you guys would have discussed your performance and collective performance, but after two days, you guys are right up there. Just how much does that fill you with pride, knowing that you've been able to execute what you guys would have spoken about, giving this crowd, being here for the past two days, so much to cheer about?

DEAN BURMESTER: I think there's always the emphasis on performance because not only bringing the event here, it's one thing. We know that the crowd has backed us and bought tickets. Obviously they want to see amazing golfers like Bryson and Jon Rahm and Sergio and Phil and everybody. But we want them to be 120 percent behind us. We want to be the all-South African team that they know and love, and we want to put our name in the hat with the great sports teams that we've been able to produce over the years.

Doing what we've done over the last two days proves that we can do it and proves that we're definitely a force to be reckoned with, so it's special.