Manila (AFP) – The internet’s favourite golfing brothers, George and Wesley Bryan, said Tuesday it was “wild” to bring their social media zest to Asia this week in an event stacked with major winners. Former Masters champions Patrick Reed, Dustin Johnson and Charl Schwartzel, plus 2010 British Open winner Louis Oosthuizen, lead the most prestigious field ever assembled in the Philippines.
Playing alongside them when the Asian Tour International Series event begins Thursday will be the effervescent Bryan brothers, who are out to show they can balance being competitive with having fun. The American duo, who have 692,000 subscribers to their “Bryan Bros Golf” YouTube channel, have both played on the US PGA Tour. But they admitted they were pinching themselves to be in such rarefied company.
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“Honestly I still can’t figure out why we got invited. It’s wild to be in the same field as multiple major champions,” George told reporters at Sta. Elena Golf Club, south of Manila. The fast-talking duo started posting trick shot videos online in 2014 and rapidly went viral. They now also have a vast social media following across platforms such as Instagram, Twitch and X. While their videos can be “hit-and-giggle”, behind the fun lurk two seriously good players from a golfing family.
– ‘Aim high’ –
Wesley won the US PGA Tour’s RBC Heritage tournament in 2017 — European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald was runner-up. George was a decorated amateur and made the cut on his PGA Tour debut in Bermuda in 2023. Their father, George Bryan III, is a professional who played in the 1999 US PGA Championship. The DP World Tour invited them to play in Germany’s BMW International Open in July. Wesley made the cut and finished tied 64th at two-under par. George did not make it to the weekend — but neither did Reed.
On their first professional tour start since, they want again to finish ahead of some more big names. “George did beat Sergio Garcia at the BMW International,” laughed the 35-year-old Wesley. “And I beat Patrick Reed. So who knows? Maybe we’ll add a few more names to that list.” George has loftier ambitions. “My goal is to aim high,” he said. “I’d love to finish top 20 this week.”
They also want to lift the lid on the life of a professional tour golfer in an entertaining way. “We just want to create fun, family-friendly videos that our audience will enjoy,” said Wesley. George added: “We’ll be documenting the whole experience — the travel, adjusting to jet lag, learning the course and competing on the Asian Tour. “And we want to showcase the beauty of Filipino golf and culture,” said the 37-year-old.
“We’re excited to connect with fans here. When we announced we’d be playing we got so many messages from Filipino followers,” he said. “Even if just a few of them come out to watch this week, that’s a win for us.”
© 2024 AFP
