Dean Burmester, Branden Grace and Charl Schwartzel are prepping for LIV Golf’s debut in South Africa with a title charge at the SA Open this week.
Stellenbosch Golf Club will be the host course for just the second time in history, with the first time coming in 1999. The course is in the Western Cape of South Africa, at the foot of the Helderberg mountains.
DEAN BURMESTER
Burmester, a member of the all-South African Southern Guards GC which will be well represented this week, is coming off a strong T6 finish at LIV Golf Adelaide. He won the South African Open in 2024 at Blair Atholl Golf Club.
BRANDEN GRACE
The Southern Guards GC star has been one of the most consistent performers through the first two LIV Golf events in 2026. He finished T9 in Riyadh and T8 in Adelaide. He won the South African Open in 2020 and was T4 in last year’s edition.
CHARL SCHWARTZEL
Schwartzel, the final member of Southern Guards GC competing this week, is off to a solid start to his 2026 campaign. He finished T30 in Riyadh and T17 in Adelaide, where he had a strong week with his irons, gaining over four strokes on approach. The former Masters champion is beloved in his home country and has six top-5 finishes at the South African Open since 2011.
There is a great deal on the line this week: For the first time ever in the tournament’s 115 editions, the winner earns a direct exemption into the 2026 Masters. The South African Open is also part of the Open Qualifying Series. The top three finishers (highest placed players not already exempt) will earn spots in the field for The Open Championship.
LIV Golf tees off in South Africa at Steyn City on 19 March.
Photo: LIV Golf
Article Link: Three LIV Golf stars ready to challenge at SA Open