Staff WriterDean Burmester didn’t just turn up for moving day at the PIF Saudi International — he kicked the door down. Burmester has blasted himself into a share of the lead with a ruthless seven-under 64, fuelled by the sort of confidence only a long-drive showdown in South Africa can give a man.
The Stinger GC powerhouse, already a two-time LIV Golf champion with his latest triumph in Chicago, arrived in Riyadh with fresh swagger after finishing runner-up in last week’s long-drive challenge. It seems that little detour wasn’t a distraction — it was rocket fuel.
He admits the whole experience unexpectedly sharpened his edge. The way he tells it, he didn’t just gain yards; he picked up a crash course in biomechanics from the big-hitters who make their living cracking golf balls into another postcode.
“I learned a few things from the long drive champion in South Africa,” he said. “It’s more about hip mobility and rotation and how he creates speed without feeling like you have to hit it that hard.
It was really interesting to see the dynamic of how they do it. I’m sure Bryson (DeChambeau) knows all about this stuff because he did it, but for me to learn something like that was cool.”
Whatever clicked, it’s working. His 64 comes straight off the back of a blistering eight-under 63 in round two, vaulting him shoulder-to-shoulder with early leader Caleb Surratt heading into a final round that promises more drama than a soap-opera Christmas special.
This is no ordinary week. The US$5 million Saudi stop is the final event of The International Series — the Asian Tour’s elevated slate that offers a golden ticket onto LIV Golf for the season’s top performers.
Careers can swing, break, or boom on this stage. Burmester, tuned up and hitting it like Thor with a graphite hammer, knows exactly what’s at stake.
He’s taken what he learned in a driving grid in South Africa and turned it into a spotlight moment in Riyadh. And with one round to go, he has every intention of finishing what he’s started.
If he keeps launching it like this, good luck to anyone trying to get past him.
