Adelaide LIV Golf Director Nick Haslam says the recent extension is a ‘great opportunity’ to  get more eyes on the tournament as it continues to grow in popularity. 

Over the weekend LIV Golf and the South Australian Governemt announced the tournament would stay put in Adelaide until 2028 at the Grange Golf Club, with the option to extend until 2031. 

The announcement made by State Premier Peter Malinauskas ahead of the weekend’s final round also stated the tournament would remain exclusively in Adelaide, warding off interest from rival state governments until 2028. 

LIV Golf and the South Australia Government also announced the redevelopment of a golf course in North Adelaide, which will influence decision surrounding the 2031 extension. 

The revamp, designed by Aussie golf great Peter Norman, includes an 18-hole championship course, more facilities and is situated in a more central location.

Speaking to SportFM, Haslam says the redevelopment is a great opportunity and will allow more fans to attend the tournament.

“The Grange Golf Club is flat, which makes it a challenge to continue to get more people into the facility, because you need to get more people off the ground so they can see enough golf,” he said.

“Each year we’ve increased the number of viewing platforms and grandstands and hospitality structures and we’ll continue to do that. 

“The announcement on Sunday that we’re going to be moving the tournament to North Adelaide Golf Club is just a great opportunity. 

“It’s an opportunity to develop a green field site from scratch for a specific purpose for a golf tournament. 

“We’ll keep building here as much as we can, but it’s going to have a limit, and then we’ll move to a new site where we can start from scratch in terms of how we would build it to get as many people out to the tournament.” 

LIV Golf first came down under in 2023 and has gone on to become a highlight of the schedule, with plenty of support which has rapidly pushed it into the top echelon of major Australian sporting events. 

Since then, LIV Golf Adelaide has had tremendous success and attracted more fans to the Grange Golf Club, with a record 102,483 fans in attendance over three days of action. 

Of those attendees, Haslam estimates 42 per-cent of those were interstate or overseas visitors, which he says is ‘great’ for South Australia. 

“Adelaide’s probably a city, before investment in LIV Golf and Gather Round, that’s struggled to get those large interstate numbers that you might have at things like the tennis over in Melbourne,” he said.

“That’s been fantastic. You can see that in the hotel stays and the spend at restaurants and so forth. From everything we can see, it’s been really positive economically.

“I think it’s not only that, its the impact that it has had on the perception of the state as well. The Premier’s gone out and talked about it. 

“This is something that is broadcast around the world into 156 countries, so the power of that, you can’t put a number on it but it’s certainly been great for the state.” 

With attendance figures continuing to rise, Haslam says Australia has embraced the Saudi Arabia-backed tournament and its features, leading to its success.

“Its a combination of Aussies loving their golf and they just haven’t been able to consistently see the best players in the world live. This format allows them to do that,” he said.

“Aussies love live events and I think they’ve really embraced the format. You’ve talked about the golf, but the entertainment after – we’ve had FISHER play the last three years, Dom Dolla on the friday night. 

“We’ve continued to make this tournament as accessible as possible, not only to the golf fan or someone who loves to come and party, but kids and families as well. It’s been a recipe that’s worked.”

IMAGE: LIV GOLF