Masters 2024: The reason the patrons gave Bryson DeChambeau so much love on Thursday shocked him

AUGUSTA, Ga. — In comparison to recent years, it felt like there was decidedly less fanfare surrounding Bryson DeChambeau entering the 2024 Masters. Once a main character at every tournament he teed up it in, DeChambeau was what golf writers like to describe as "the forgotten man" at the season's first major.

Then, he went out and shot a seven-under 65 on Thursday, his career-low round at Augusta National, a course he once claimed was a "par 67" for him. Comments like that, plus countless other things DeChambeau has said and done over the years, have made him one of the most divisive figures in the sport. The type of figure the patrons don't exactly stand and applaud for here (see: Reed, Patrick).

Turns out, according to DeChambeau, it was the exact opposite in his opening round. Not only was he well-received, he was feeling some serious love, and it wasn't even for his actual play on the golf course.

While DeChambeau is known for his on-course accolades, including U.S. Open and U.S. Amateur victories, he might be better known for his YouTube page. There, DeChambeau can reach a much larger, younger audience, many of whom are on the grounds this week pumping his tires on that front.

"I'm just trying to promote the game of golf in the best way I possibly can, YouTube being one of them," DeChambeau said after his round. Whether it's Instagram, X, or even Snapchat."

Snapchat, DeChambeau says, has been surprisingly beneficial in terms of visibility. Hearing how much some patrons love his Snapchat legitimately shocked him.

"I mean, it's crazy, I've gotten a crazy amount of love on Snapchat," he said. "Getting over like a million views a day on Snapchat and these people coming out of nowhere and Patrons saying, I love your Snapchat. Like really? They are loving it that much? That's awesome."

DeChambeau's YouTube videos, which feature some of his fellow LIV golfers as well as other well-known YouTube creators, generally get between 200,000 and 700,000 views. He has cracked the million mark numerous times, too, like he did in a video of a match between he and Phil Mickelson (2.3 million) and for his video of his round of 58 at The Greenbrier last year (1.5 million). On Snapchat, though, it sounds like 1 million is the standard. Big-time stuff.

"Continuing to grow those platforms in the way we know how is something I'm keen on doing and I'm excited to do for the future," he said. "I think that's where everything is going."

He ain't wrong.

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