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SA's Dean Burmester wins LIV Golf event in Chicago, inspired by wife's marathon feat

The 36-year-old South African fought back from a shaky start to force a three-way playoff with defending champion Jon Rahm and Spain's Josele Ballester. On the first playoff hole, both Rahm and Ballester missed makeable birdie putts from about 12 feet, opening the door for Burmester to seal the win.

It's his second individual LIV Golf triumph after his breakthrough in Miami in April last year, and it comes with a cool $4 million payday. There was more glory for SA as well, with Burmester's team, Stinger GC, edging Torque GC for the team title - capping a weekend to remember for one of South Africa's top golfing exports.

"This has been emotional. Since kind of before Virginia I've been going through a bit of a rough time, personal stuff, and I've just been grinding and trying to get better," said Burmester.

"I think about my kids and my wife back home, and I'm just trying to do the best I can for them. My wife finished an ultra marathon the week of West Virginia.

"That Sunday I was on my phone watching her, and that truly gave me an inspiration to kind of - if she can do that, she can run 90 whatever kilometers in a day, nine and a half hours or whatever it was, then I can do anything.

"Yeah, for me, that was where it's at. Then after three bogeys in a row to start, I was like, fudge, I don't know where I'm going. The head was nowhere.

"But I just kept at it, and Jason, my caddie, was just phenomenal. He was just like, we never give up. We're not going to give up. We've been through too much c*** to give up.

"That's what we did. Then I had a chance in regulation. Obviously hit a good putt, lagged it, just to protect my lead, and then to hit that out of the rough and get the right bounce and then roll it in -- I watched Jon's go left. I knew I had the right line, and to roll it in in front of everybody that's here is amazing."

Rahm's loss in Chicago marked another setback for the Spaniard, whose grip on the LIV title is slipping. With Joaquin Niemann leading the standings, the Chilean looks on track to claim the 2025 crown.
 

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