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‘The ultimate goal is the Tour de France’ - How Tour de Tietema went from YouTube pranks to pro ranks

TDT-Unibet are on a mission to reach the top of the sport, and they're having fun along the way

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Tour de Tietema-Unibet may not have won any stages at this year’s Tour of Britain , but they have won hearts. 

The Dutch Continental team, classified in cycling’s third tier, has been omnipresent at the race, the squad's sky blue jersey a constant in breakaways. 

For a team in its first year, exposure is key. In fact, so keen are the riders to be on show, that they’ve won four of the seven combativity awards so far by public vote. 

The prize, the team’s owner Bas Tietema admits, is a popularity contest. And TDT-Unibet are winning. 

“We have not been the most combative rider in each of those stages,” Tietema laughs as he speaks to Cycling Weekly on a still summer’s morning in Southend-on-Sea. “But what you can see is that we have actual fans. It’s not just TV spectators, we have actual fans who want us to win the prize.” 

It’s hard to believe that, up until last year, Tietema was just a YouTuber . Together with his friends Josse Wesster and Devin van der Wiel, he would follow the Tour de France each July, filming challenges with riders and posting tightly-cut videos to his 170,000 subscribers. 

“We started at the Tour de France in 2019, just making silly challenges, like wheelie contests and handing out pizzas,” he explains. “Right now, we’re a Continental team that’s pretty competitive, and next year we’re stepping up to Pro Conti."

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On their YouTube page, TDT-Unibet describe themselves as a "Sunday-league team with WorldTour stature". This is clear on the seafront in Southend, where the riders laugh and joke ahead of stage six, surrounded by colourfully-wrapped Škodas and a high-tech camper. 

The idea to build a squad, Tietema says, came about a few years ago. 

“The first time I told [Wesster] about it was 2020, I guess,” he says. Poised beside him with a camera, Wesster quickly interjects. “Back then it was a really stupid idea,” he smiles. 

For Tietema, though, it was never a joke. “I really believed that from creating a YouTube channel, you get fans and you get people who follow your agenda. Setting up a professional cycling team with fans is way better, in my opinion, than just starting a team and hoping that you get fans by good results. I thought it could be a really nice, smooth transition.”

Already, the YouTube channel had sponsors. Big ones, too, like Shimano , Garmin , Cannondale and Škoda. The challenge came in finding riders, and more crucially, convincing them that the guys who do “silly” YouTube videos were serious about racing.

Harry Tanfield signs on in Sherwood Forest, ahead of stage four of the Tour of Britain. 

One of those who came on board was 28-year-old former WorldTour rider Harry Tanfield, who was searching for a new team after Ribble Weldtite folded last year.

“It’s quite hard when you’ve got established teams and then Bas’s,” the Brit says. “I was like, ‘What’s happening here?’ but in the end, I just went with it. And it’s good fun. I don’t regret it at all."

Having previously ridden for AG2R and Katusha-Alpecin, Tanfield feels like he has been "around the block" in the pro scene. His current team, he says, brings "a different perspective on racing". 

"You may have seen from the social media side of things and content wise," Tanfield smiles. "It's really engaging for us." 

At the Tour of Britain, TDT-Unibet’s social media team have played a blinder . Alongside their campaigns to rule over the combativity award, they’ve created endless memes, photoshopping Tanfield’s face onto Thomas the Tank Engine, and producing a Britain’s Got Talent-inspired video. 

The #TourofBritain so far: pic.twitter.com/Vi2XkLl92z September 8, 2023

“We have almost more media employees than [rider] staff,” Tietema explains. “That’s the core. We need to have them. It also makes, from the start, the costs higher than maybe some other Continental teams. But we needed to make that investment.” 

The results, too, are coming. In June, the team took their first victory with a stage win at the ZLM Tour in the Netherlands, beating a field that included sprint legend Mark Cavendish . At the Tour of Britain, their sprinter Davide Bomboi, second cousin of Tom Boonen , has scored five top 10s, brushing shoulders with WorldTour stars. 

Davide Bomboi cools down in Felixstowe. 

When the 23-year-old signed for the team, he saw an opportunity to prove himself. “In this period last year, I didn’t have a contract,” Bomboi says. “I was aiming for a professional contract, but no team came. Then Bas came with this project, and I thought it was a great chance for me.

“With everything that comes with it, the content team and how we do everything with the videos and stuff, it’s just fucking nice. We have a really nice look and feel, I think, but there’s also a real plan behind it. We’re not just here with the colourful bikes .” 

The plan going forwards, Tietema reveals, is ambitious. Next season, TDT-Unibet will be a Pro Continental team, racing in the tier below the sport’s highest level, the WorldTour. Already, they’ve been flirting with race organisers for invites to some of the biggest events. 

“My ultimate goal is to bring the team to the Tour de France,” Tietema says, matter of factly. “Then we’ll have the journey that we started at the Tour de France with our own tents, to having a team on the Champs-Élysées.

“We have milestones along that road. Next year, we want to do our first WorldTour race, then a Monument, then the first Grand Tour. It’s quite crazy, and it’s far, but it’s also in reach. The last year it was more like a crazy, stupid idea to even think about it, but it’s getting more realistic.” 

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Tom joined Cycling Weekly as a news and features writer in the summer of 2022, having previously contributed as a freelancer. He is the host of The TT Podcast , which covers both the men's and women's pelotons and has featured a number of prominent British riders. 

An enthusiastic cyclist himself, Tom likes it most when the road goes uphill and actively seeks out double-figure gradients on his rides. 

He's also fluent in French and Spanish and holds a master's degree in International Journalism. 

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‘The past few months have felt like playing ProCyclingManager’: TDT-Unibet aim for 2026 Tour de France

Team co-founder Bas Tietema speaks with GCN about their journey to date, reflections on 2023 and heady ambitions for 2024 and beyond

George Poole

Junior writer.

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TDT-Unibet was not even a pipe dream for Bas Tietema when he set up the Tour de Tietema YouTube channel in 2019

Less than a year old, TDT-Unibet are a team unlike any other. Their roots come from the Tour de Tietema YouTube channel and their ambitions lie one day in the Tour de France , but along the way, they have trodden a never-before-walked path that has seen them grow from a gang of three to a company of over 40 employees.

For those who haven’t had their attention caught by the fluorescent bikes, viral social media posts and passionate supporters that embody the Dutch outfit, TDT-Unibet are a cycling team coming towards the end of their first year of racing. The team was set up by the three men behind the Tour de Tietema YouTube channel , namely Bas Tietema , Josse Wester and Devin van der Wiel.

Tour de Tietema has supported Wester in the past as he went from novice cyclist to amateur racer at the Dutch club level, but 2023 saw the team competing as a UCI Continental outfit with the backing of gambling company Unibet.

Not content at the Continental level, TDT-Unibet will make the step up to the ProConti ranks in 2024 - just one step below the sport’s highest tier, the WorldTour . This has meant expanding their team, learning lessons from less than 12 months of racing and setting lofty ambitions for 2024 and beyond - in an experience likened to “playing ProCyclingManager in real life” by team co-founder and boss, Bas Tietema.

The Dutchman has recently announced his own retirement from cycling but spent almost an hour speaking exclusively with GCN over video call about his enthusiasm for taking TDT-Unibet from strength to strength.

“It can be pretty cool that I finish 60th in a Pro race or whatever, but I want the whole project to succeed and that is my personal goal. I get so much joy and excitement from doing that, which made my retirement decision quite easy. It is my own team, so every race feels like I am racing for myself," said Tietema, who passed his UCI sports director exam ahead of the new season.

TDT-Unibet as a team apart in professional cycling

The Tour de Tietema YouTube channel came about as a passion project from Tietema, Wester and Van der Wiel in the summer of 2019, who had the shared ambition to travel to the Tour de France and document their experience through a series of challenges along the way. Videos such as handing out Coca-Cola cans to the peloton as they rode along, delivering pizzas to the riders after stage 21 on the Champs-Élysées and even riding a city bike up Mont Ventoux soon followed.

Given their roots as a media company, their methods remain atypical compared to the majority in cycling. Their social media presence is large, their travails are captured in the form of mini-series on the YouTube channel, and their debut season in the Continental ranks has been captured by Van der Wiel for a feature-length film that will be premiered on December 4 at the AFAS Circustheater in The Hague.

“Everything we do is pretty unusual apparently… but for us, it is usual! And it has to be usual, in my opinion,” said Tietema. “If you look at Arsenal or other football clubs, Formula 1 etc, you need to have a proper media strategy. We don’t see ourselves as quirky or unusual necessarily, this should be the standard for all teams, but it is unusual that it is not.”

© Sprint Cycling Agency

Taken at the ZLM Tour, Yentl Vandevelde celebrates the first victory in TDT-Unibet history

It is not just off the bike that TDT-Unibet have been strong in their first year of competition. The team has already team picked up their first victory at the ZLM Tour in June, with Yentl Vandevelde winning stage 1. Tietema reflected on the watershed moment with pride but admitted that the preparations for 2024 often take priority over toasting each big result for the side.

“It was pretty unreal, but actually, milestones for us are not mostly results-related, because that is something we do not always have in hand,” he said. “In these moments, I am pretty introverted because I am always working on things that are happening in the future. Often, when the team wins or picks up good results, I am already focused on the next thing.”

Speaking shortly after the end of their first season, however, Tietema did allow himself to reflect on the achievements of TDT-Unibet, which don’t just focus on their three victories in 2023, but on their consistency and rider development.

‘The Tour of Britain was the perfect example of things coming together’

The year may have only yielded three victories for TDT-Unibet, but each day has been a learning experience.

“It has been a rollercoaster!” reflected Tietema. “We have had really big highs like the victory in the ZLM Tour, we have had really big lows like the Olympia’s Tour, where nobody from our team even finished the race and the series was called ‘Going for Yellow!’

“Of course, to win a ProRace as a Continental team is a big thing.​​ This season it became almost normal that we finished in the top 10 at every UCI 1.1 race, and I think that is the biggest achievement for us throughout the year, from aiming at finishing top 10 to needing to finish in the top 5 to be deemed a good race.”

In many ways, September’s Tour of Britain encapsulated everything that TDT-Unibet had been working towards from the moment the plans for the team were set in place. Throughout the eight days of racing, the team finished inside the top 10 with Davide Bomboi on the first five stages, placed Abram Stockman inside the breakaway on all but two stages, and created a plethora of engaging social media content that provided light-hearted relief in a race accused by many of being somewhat boring.

“I think that we were doing really well compared to other Conti, ProConti and even some WorldTour teams. I think that the Tour of Britain this year was the perfect example of where things were coming together,” said Tietema, with the progression of Bomboi being particularly pleasing for the team.

“I still remember last year when I sat down with him in October and he was doubting if he wanted to continue as a rider or start his studies. From there on, he transformed during the season. Of course, he had to develop on a physical level, but you see the confidence that he gets throughout this season from being in a winning team - even if we lose sometimes.”

The Belgian sprinter is still only 23 years of age, but his progression in 2023 saw him end the season with a tremendous third-place finish at Elfstedenrace, behind only WorldTour dynamites Jasper Philipsen (Alpecin-Deceuninck) and Olav Kooij (Jumbo-Visma).

Standing next to Olav Kooij (left) and Jasper Philipsen (Centre), Davide Bomboi was not in bad company on the Elfstedenrace podium

His development on the team highlights the possibilities for young riders under the tutelage of Tietema’s coaching setup. Growing from a squad of 13 in 2023 to one of 20 in 2024, recruitment has been vital for the team boss over the last few months, and in particular, internationalising his squad ahead of the step up to ProConti level.

TDT-Unibet prioritise talent over reputation

In 2023, TDT-Unibet only had two riders from non-Benelux countries - Harry Tanfield of the United Kingdom and Tomáš Kopecký​​ of the Czech Republic. For 2024, this number will grow to 11. Tanfield and ZLM Tour stage winner Vandevelde will be leaving in the winter, as will others, but in their place, TDT-Unibet have used a unique approach to scouting in order to source reinforcements.

“We don’t have the WorldTour budget and because we also have to decide how to split our money between the sporting and the media side, this has implications for how much we can spend on riders’ salaries or other stuff. We need to be creative and use our knowledge to get the best riders onboard,” admitted Tietema.

“It felt like playing ProCyclingManager in real life over the past couple of months. We were in a little scouting group where I was involved, Julia [Soek] as general manager and Aurélien [a statistician on X (formerly Twitter) going by the handle @LPDouces].

Tomáš Kopecký will remain with TDT-Unibet in 2024 as they make the step up to ProConti level

“From April, we were looking forward to selecting the best riders as possible for our 2024 campaign and we wanted to have Continental riders that were the best climbers at that level, the best Classics riders, and we wanted to put them together with the ideology that they all wanted to get the best out of themselves, instead of having ProConti or WorldTour riders who feel like they are stepping down.”

Read more: 'There are no words for it' - Charlie Paige bags dream ticket to pro ranks with TDT-Unibet

Prioritising talent over reputation may allow TDT-Unibet to get more bang for their buck, and Tietema explains the ability to do so is in part down to their strong media grounding, which affords them plenty of sponsor visibility without signing a supposed star rider.

“That’s the benefit of our media presence. Normally a ProTeam will mostly need some big riders because that is their publicity, that is their media value that they can sell to sponsors. We have a media presence that can value riders even if they are still unknown. We can make that with our fanbase and with our creativity with the YouTube channel. That is way cheaper than giving, for example, Chris Froome €5 million for nothing.”

‘The 2026 Tour de France is the ultimate goal’ but progress must be sustainable

Now well into their winter team camps and preparations, TDT-Unibet are firmly looking towards their goals for 2024 and beyond, which Tietema hopes will eventually end with an invite to the Tour de France.

As they pitch themselves to organisers and racers, though, Tietema is conscious that the team should take gradual steps, not just leap at every possible opportunity.

“There is only one time that we can do the Tour de France for the first time, and there is only one moment where we can do a Monument for the first time, so what we want to do is make every year a new step and a new milestone on our journey.

“When we possibly get an invite to a Monument next year, we might have to say ‘no, next year we are going to do our first WorldTour races,’ perhaps an Amstel Gold or an Omloop Het Nieuwsblad, and then in 2025, that will be the first Monument or first Grand Tour. Then in 2026, possibly our first Tour de France. This way, we are making episodes of our journey instead of being too greedy and wanting everything already in the first year.”

It is no surprise that a team originating from a YouTube channel are tied so strongly to the idea of a narrative journey, though Tietema makes no illusions of where he wants that journey to go.

“To go to the Tour de France in 2026 - that’s the ultimate goal,” he concluded. “We want to do that with the most people from the start to the very end, I want to keep people with us on the road because that is the identity and that is how you take people on the journey with you.”

Eight of TDT-Unibet's 13 riders from 2023, including Lander Loockx, will remain on the team in 2024

Although Amstel Gold, Monuments and the Tour de France may be on the horizon for Tietema’s squad, first up is their big screen premiere in The Hague in a little under two weeks. Their journey to the ProConti ranks has been nothing short of entertaining, but it remains to be seen how the sequel will stack up.

• Nationality Netherlands
• UCI Code TDT

Bas Tietema

• Team TdT-Unibet

Yentl Vandevelde

• Team Team Flanders-Baloise
• Nationality Belgium

• Nationality United Kingdom

Tomas Kopecky

• Nationality Czech Republic

Harry Tanfield

• Team Saint Piran

Lander Loockx

Cannondale is a bicycle manufacturer based in Connecticut, USA. From road, gravel, electric and mountain bikes to equipment, clothing and components, the company produces a host of products for almost every type of cyclist.

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Based in the UK, George has been at GCN since 2021.

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Tour De Tietema: Turning Cycling Upside Down

In just two years, Tour De Tietema has become a hit with the cycling community while taking YouTube by storm and rising to be one of the leading channels of the sport.

Now, they are looking to push cycling itself towards this level of popularity. We Love Cycling sat down with Bas Tietema, one-third of the channel creators alongside Devin van der Wiel and Josse Wester, to discuss the success of the company and what can be realised by the outfit after its incredible first two years.

Bas who has been born and raised in the Netherlands used to be a top up-and-coming rider in the youth ranks with BMC. He not only rode with the likes of Mathieu van der Poel and Sam Oomen but also had great results, most notably a third place at the Paris-Roubaix Espoirs in 2014.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Tour de Tietema Cycling Team (@tourdetietema)

Despite the serious potential, the Dutchman struggled with injury and illness, which caused him to leave road racing behind a few years ago. He started by telling We Love Cycling: “I had three years with the BMC Development team with good results and the races like Paris-Roubaix really suited me. But, in the second year, I broke my collar bone. In the surgery, I got some painkillers and other medication, which gave me a skin problem. After the injury, every time I rode my bike, my skin would heat up and I would get a rash. This was every time I rode my bike so I struggled with that, less training, worse results. All of that.

“I knew my level and what I could do, and you’re riding with those big names and my level wasn’t improving, but they were. I now love what I do, but you have so many guys in cycling who don’t earn much money, don’t finish. I’m happy that I can do what I want and make money off it.”

It was in 2019 when Bas saw a gap on the market, noticing that cycling has somewhat of a problem creating fun content to connect both fans and riders together. It is a sport where fans are as close to their heroes as they could possibly be, yet a rider’s personality can sometimes be hard to decipher.

Alongside Devin (who he credits as the creative mastermind behind each video) and Josse, they looked for a new way of sharing the stories of both the athletes and the sport.

“My idea was for people to watch the videos and enjoy cycling even if they didn’t know all of the riders. I was looking for people who believed in the story as well and I came into contact with Josse and Devin, and Devin had just done an internship with Jumbo-Visma. He had never been into cycling – he came to it from football – and he didn’t have any idea who the riders were, but he was very good at storytelling. He wanted to make his own stories, so it was all the right time, right moment. That’s how the story started back at the 2019 Tour De France.”

The channel has gone from strength to strength since then. At the start, there was just three of them. Now, they are joined by two freelancers, one full-time employee, and another person focusing on their website – launched this year with an added subscription model and shipping logistics.

This is a serious venture, really looking to change the face of the sport, whether by returning home from Sicily in the same amount of time as the 2020 Giro D’Italia takes or delivering their now-classic pizzas on the Champs Elysées at the end of the Tour de France.

Speaking about those early days and his relationship with the pro peloton, he explained: “In the early days, it was tough. The cyclists see you as belonging to the journalists, they know broadcasting. It is an old-fashioned sport, and YouTube can have a negative image. People kept their distance and were wondering what we were going to do.

“Since then, the riders started trusting us and know that anything we make is always in a positive light for cycling. We are not there to make the headlines with negative stuff, we have built that trust and now we see those guys watching our videos. Around 60 to 70 of the riders at the Tour this year knew about us and watched our content, so we have that trust now.”

With the pizza orders set for a year-on-year increase, it helps that they can offset those costs with a channel that, although niche, is arguably the biggest of its kind and that growth has taken the team by surprise.

“You say we now have 120,000 subscribers and that is quite unbelievable. You know, how many people are interested in cycling content? When you are looking at YouTube, you look at lifestyle, cars, more general stuff. And cycling is still a niche. When we did the first Tour De France, the plans were to do other sports like the European Championships in football and the Olympics – a wider range.

“Because all of those events were cancelled due to Covid, that’s how the journey of us riding our bikes started. Devin and Josse bought their first bikes, and we noticed that this could be something interesting as more and more people were buying bikes. That’s how we started with the Flanders series, going from not riding bikes to riding the Tour of Flanders. What’s unbelievable is that we are getting 200,000 to 300,000 views on each video and there is no cycling-team channel that can reach those numbers.”

Now, they are also looking to achieve more on the bike through their current series, Josse Goes for Gold, seeing how far Josse can go starting as a novice rider. Škoda proudly supports Josse in his endeavour and provided him with a special team car.

He has already received help from Team Jumbo-Visma in his pursuit of glory and Bas is hoping his journey can give the team even more identity as they move forward.

He explained: “Josse is riding on the lowest, lowest level in Holland, but thousands of people are watching him. If you can make a good story and that is something I see, that everyone is focused on results in cycling. You may win a stage of the Tour of Turkey for example, but as a rider you can make a story about yourself and show yourself as someone different. That’s important now.”

A new wave of people, some former World Tour riders like Laurens Ten Dam, are also jumping into this world, with his Live Slow Ride Fast channel.

Bas sees these alternatives as a way to grow and enhance the sport.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Bas Tietema | Tour de Tietema (@bastietema)

“I see that cycling has a strange model. You now see some riders like Sagan, Cavendish – they know how the sport works, it’s entertainment. They are there for entertainment. People like Lachlan Morton, Ten Dam and the Legion Team in the States are not always riding at the highest level, but they have a big following and are making more money than some World Tour riders.”

With a six-digit following at the time of interview, Bas and his team are showing big companies like Ineos Grenadiers and Rapha (both have a smaller audience) the way forward in creating engaging content for younger fans.

But what does the future hold for the Dutch team?

“We still don’t know whether we are going to go into more road racing or are we going in the future to different sports? We haven’t made a decision because everything is changing so quickly. From one year ago, if you told me we were making this type of series (Josse Goes For Gold), then I would have said no, so it’s really hard. There is potential to grow this into an international team, who knows?”

Whatever the future holds for the trio, they have got into the heart of cycling fans – and riders – all over the world. Their goal was to turn cycling upside down – it seems like they are going the right way to doing just that.

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Tour de Tietema discuss future plans for new continental team TDT-Unibet

From January 1st, Bas Tietema , Josse Wester and Devin van der Wiel, the faces of YouTube channel Tour de Tietema will become the faces of the newest continental side TDT-Unibet . Now they've been discussing their goals, dreams and future plans.

With over 150k subscribers on YouTube, Tour de Tietema is one of the go-to places for cycling content online. After launching an amateur cycling team in 2021, they recently announced they were to join the world of professional cycling with the launch of their team TDT-Unibet in 2023. Speaking in an interview with Wielerflits, Bas Tietema gave some insight, "There is already a large fan base with people who follow the story and for us, having our own team is actually the next step in what we are going to do. With the people on board, both creatively and sportingly, I think we can certainly do that."

TDT-Unibet - Bas Tietema officially announces new pro cycling team

Being a world-renowned YouTube channel, one of the things that will make TDT-Unibet unique will be the unrivalled behind-the-scenes coverage. "Sports documentaries are popping up like mushrooms right now," Devin says. "What I think we can make the difference is that we can tell everything from our perspective. So Bas from the cyclist's perspective, and Josse and I more from the sidelines and as a creator. Basically like we've done it before. It's just a journey of discovery through cycling."

When discussing who will be in charge of deciding the riders and leaders, Bas was clear "That will be done by experts, including Hugo Haak. Our focus is on the media side, but we make sure that everything is arranged professionally." he said. "Maybe if we led with the three of us, it might have been really funny for the video. Josse behind the wheel of the team leader's car… but that is not what we aim to achieve."

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As seen in other sports such as when famous footballing YouTuber Spencer Carmichael-Brown created his own professional team Hashtag FC, there is often initial resistance and scepticism to new, revolutionary ideas, something suffered by the boys of Tour de Tietema. "If the first idea didn't arouse resistance from people, our plan probably wasn't good enough." Josse says. "Of course there are people who think: it won't work, it can't be done. If you let that guide you, you can't do many things these days... This is really a boy's dream."

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Tour de Tietema Unibet’s Bas Tietema Gets PEZ’d!

Rider/Team Owner Interview There are many ways to become a professional cyclist, but Dutchman Bas Tietema must be unique in his path: Come up through the ranks, start a YouTube channel, get a contract with a Belgian Conti team, then start your own team. Ed Hood had to find out more.

Some teams have embraced ‘Social Media’ more – and better – than others; but it’s now universally accepted that it’s essential for teams to have a presence, ‘in the ether.’

GreenEDGE with their ‘Backstage Pass’ videos on You Tube understood early the value of social media and during the pandemic whilst many teams went into hibernation, Quick-Step produced interesting and fun videos about what their riders were up to.

But taking things one step further is, ‘You Tuber’ and Dutch professional cyclist, Bas Tietema whose ‘Tour de Tietema’ You Tube channel will have his own Continental team for 2023 with online gambling giant, Unibet as main sponsor – the company ‘blurb’ tells us: “Unibet provides a platform for sports betting, online casino, bingo and online poker to over 11 million customers in over 100 countries.” A major sponsor many larger teams would be happy to be associated with.

We caught up with Bas early in the New Year to hear his tale:

PEZ: Happy New Year, Bas – going back to the start, you were a promising junior rider. Bas Tietema: Yes, I was pretty decent and as a result I got the opportunity to join the BMC Development Team which was one of the best u23 teams around at that time.

PEZ: And you took third in the 2014 u23 Paris-Roubaix. Yes, the result I’m perhaps best known for and it was a quality field with Mike Teunissen winning, Stefan Kung 12th and Tiesj Benoot 15th.

PEZ: You were strong against the watch too with a podium in the Dutch iTT Championships. In that era you had guys like Mads Pedersen and Mathieu Van Der Poel on their way up and we were all pretty ‘complete’ riders – not climbers but we could all ride the cobbles and time trial pretty strongly.

PEZ: After BMC you went to AN Post. BMC stopped, they got tired of bringing guys up and then other teams coming along and getting the benefit of their development work. My management agency was Trinity who had good connections with AN Post so when BMC folded they organised me a ride.

PEZ: Then you went to BEAT Cycling. That was the last year of the first period of my professional career, I had issues with skin allergies and my motivation slipped; AN Post and BEAT were semi-pro teams and it was tough for me to figure out what I wanted to do next.

PEZ: Seasons 2019 to 2021 you weren’t on the bike but 2022 saw you back in the peloton with Bingoal Pauwels Sauces. I followed lots of sports when I wasn’t racing but I still loved the bike – and I had a big interest in Social Media. I thought to myself, ‘what can I do?’ and that was the start of things, I started to post videos from the Tour de France and we went from zero to getting 200,000/300,000 views. Bingoal was one of our sponsors on the channel; I was on the bike and going OK so they gave me an opportunity to ride for the team – but I had to reach a certain level in tests. It was a hard season, I went OK in the first race, which was the Tour of Antalaya but when there were cross winds or difficult parcours it was super tough.

PEZ: You have 150,000 plus subscribers on Tour de Tietema but Dutch is the language – have you considered an English language version? I haven’t checked the numbers recently but the English language question is a good one, albeit we now have English subtitles on our videos. We’re Dutch guys though so a lot of the humour is specific to that language. We’re going to continue to focus on the Dutch/Flemish market but we know there’s big potential in the UK, USA and Australia, however we don’t want to make too big a step too quickly.

PEZ: The team, how, why? It’s an ambition I’ve had for quite some time; to provide a unique inside story from a team which is riding some of the biggest races around – I want to see how far we can go with it. We’re a Media House so we’re not relying on external platforms – and it’s not just going to be purely about results for our sponsors.

PEZ: A couple of names which caught my eye in your line up are the Englishman Harry Tanfield and the Czech Tomas Kopecky. I remember Harry’s win in the 2018 Tour of Yorkshire but he’s been unlucky with Katusha and Qhubeka folding. I saw his name in the results this year here in The Netherlands and in Belgium, that took my interest and I spoke to our team coach, Hugo Haak we agreed that Harry would be an asset to the team – particularly in the Belgian and Dutch races where cross winds are a big factor and a strong guy like Harry comes into his own. Tomas is Czech but lives in The Netherlands and speaks Dutch, he had some very strong results at the end of 2022 with third in the u23 Paris-Tours the hi-lite.

PEZ: Because of your strong Social Media presence does that help with getting into races? It’s a combination, yes the Social Media is a factor but you also have to field a strong team, which I think we have. As well as the strong riders we have excellent staff in Hugo and Rob Harmeling and that’s also a factor. We’re confirmed in the UCi 2.1 Tour of Antalya in Turkey, the UCi 1.2 Craft Ster van Zwolle and UCi 2.2 Olympia’s Tour, both in the Netherlands and the UCi 2.Pro Tour of Belgium. But we’re also hoping for wild cards in races like the ZLM Tour and Tour of Britain.

PEZ: Unibet had a bad experience with cycling sponsorship, but you have them back in the sport. They’ve been looking to come back into the sport, but yes, they had a difficult experience back in 2007 when they were caught in the middle of a dispute between ASO and the UCi about teams sponsored by gambling companies. But now, with Lotto, F de J and Circus all in the peloton there can be no complaints about ‘gambling sponsors.’ It’s a big step for them to come back but there are a lot of people in the organisation who are into the sport, they could have backed a Pro Team or World Tour team but showed belief in us and gave us a lot of freedom. And like us, they believe that Continental level is not our final destination.

PEZ: Cannondale bikes for the team and that’s one radical paint job. Cannondale are one of the best bike suppliers there is, we’ll be on the SystemSix Hi-MOD and yes, the paint job is, ‘outspoken’ for sure. We’ll be on Shimano Ultegra Di2 12 speed groupsets with Garmin computers and power meters, wheels are by the Dutch company, Scope and we’ll be riding Pirelli P Zero tyres.

PEZ: What would ‘success’ in 2023 look like for you and TDT Unibet? To make it to the highest levels, riding races like Paris-Roubaix, the Tour of Flanders and the Tour de France – that would be really great.

# Good luck to Bas and the team. You can see all of the ‘Tour de Tietema’ videos HERE on YouTube . #

It was November 2005 when Ed Hood first penned a piece for PEZ, on US legend Mike Neel. Since then he's covered all of the Grand Tours and Monuments for PEZ and has an article count in excess of 2,150 in the archive. He was a Scottish champion cyclist himself - many years and kilograms ago - and still owns a Klein Attitude, Dura Ace carbon Giant and a Fixie. He and fellow Scot and PEZ contributor Martin Williamson run the Scottish site www.veloveritas.co.uk where more of his musings on our sport can be found.

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Bas Tietema: From YouTube star to the professional peloton

How a hit youtube channel helped the dutchman realise a life-long dream..

Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! >","name":"in-content-cta","type":"link"}}'>Download the app .

You may have seen Bas Tietema’s YouTube videos from the Tour de France. Handing out 100 pizzas on the Champs-Elysées , the wheelie contest which actually got him banned from the Tour de France, or challenges like riding up Mont Ventoux on an old fixed-gear Dutch city bike . 

This year, the 27-year-old Dutchman has set a whole new challenge. He has joined the pro ranks with the Bingoal-Pauwels Sauzen-WB ProTeam and just completed his first pro race at the Tour of Antalya. 

“With Tour de Tietema [his YouTube channel] we already did a lot of bike-related challenges and even rode amateur races together last year,” he tells me with a smile. “That meant I was training to not make a fool of myself in those videos.

“When I noticed I was able to ride at the front in those amateur races and enjoy myself again on the bike in a race we came up with the challenge to train an entire winter. However, I do need a goal to train, so together with Bingoal, who sponsor Tour de Tietema, we came up with the ultimate challenge and that is to become a professional rider.”

This is not something that came out of nothing. After a career with the development team of local professional first-division football club PEC Zwolle, Tietema picked up the bike after an injury made him quit football. He developed into one of the strongest juniors of his generation in the Netherlands and came third in the U23 Paris-Roubaix when he was just 19 and part of the BMC development team.

When that team folded Tietema was struggling with a skin condition and with motivation. He rode another two seasons for third-division teams An Post and Beat Cycling before ending his career. His dream to become a pro cyclist never materialised.

“I was at the back of the bunch a lot,” he says of those years. “It was not fun because you are not part of the game anymore. When you are good you can play the cycling game but when you are not it’s a vicious cycle: skin problem, less training, bad results, less fun etc.”

Tietema already had some ideas in his mind of how to use social media in the world of cycling. He launched the Tour de Tietema YouTube channel with friend Josse Wester and Devin van der Wiel in 2019 and they made waves with their roadside videos.

When Tietema announced his challenge to try to become a pro cyclist with Bingoal, many deemed it a media stunt, helped by the shared sponsor.

“I understand the question and think it’s a logical one to ask,” Tietema says. “The professional level is a very high level and many really decent riders never get to sign that pro contract. It’s true that the Bingaol sponsorship is a stepping stone but it also means more pressure. It’s a bit like being the son of the coach of your football team. You have to prove yourself a bit more.” 

It wasn’t set in stone when Tietema embarked on his training journey in October that he would make it to the pro team. The first three videos that are now online show the tests he had to do both in the lab and during a December training camp in Spain. 

“I really had to show the team I had the level,” he says. “In the beginning I made these huge steps up. I had so much ground to make up compared to my teammates. I lost the weight and gained the watts, even up to 35 watts during one training camp. That is huge compared to the gains the other riders made. We are now finding out what my level is and whether it’s enough to be a professional rider.” 

The first signs were clearly good enough for team management. Being out of the peloton for over three years meant some adjusting and he was missing some endurance, but the Belgian team deemed Tietema’s progress good enough to add him to the team.

“The paperwork with the UCI was only completed at the end of January,” he recalls. “The pro level is a high level, also, and maybe especially for the second-tier teams like Bingoal-Pauwels Sauzen-WB where everyone works and lives 100% for the sport too. I want to show that in our videos too.

“I made it to the team and that is great. Everyone now says how awesome it all is but it also could have been a total fluke and then there would have been a lot of criticism for me and the team too. The videos now show the personalities behind the riders who would normally be a name on ProCyclingStats, so it works both ways as well.”

Tietema’s first race was the Tour of Antalya where he helped his teammate Luc Wirtgen to third place in the overall classification. 

“I wasn’t expected to be among the best riders in my first race,” he recalls. “But I could do my job for the team. It helps I have previous race experience. In the pro peloton the level is so high that you need to save as much as you can. When you do 55 km/h you can’t afford going through the wind like you would in the younger categories because it means you can’t do your job later on.

“Although it wasn’t the highest level of races, I showed I know how to ride a bike,” Tietema continues. “This race was also ideal to ease back into the pro peloton. Starting in the Belgian Classics where it’s full gas from the start would have been more stressful, I think.” 

Tietema’s next races are Kuurne-Brussel-Kuurne this weekend, GP Le Samyn, Elfstedenronde Fryslân, Profronde van Drenthe, GP de Denain, and Bredene Koksijde Classic. 

“If I had failed miserably in Antalya things would have looked different and I probably would have ended up with their development team,” he says. “Now I got a great program that will enable me to show what I can do for the team as a rider.”

The team hasn’t expressed long-term expectations from the Dutchman and is instead looking at his progress race by race.

“That’s what I do too,” he says. “The goal this year is to keep making progress as a rider and show I am worthy of being a pro cyclist. The team takes into account I am new and we evaluate after every race.” 

Tietema has often expressed his love for Paris-Roubaix. He came in third, 10th, and 11th in the U23 version. The team received a wildcard to the Queen of Classics. 

“It would be great if I could be there,” he says. “It would be like full circle to me but again, I don’t know yet. It all depends on my results in the races I get to do now. If they are a success, who knows what will happen? I could even do the biggest races in April then.” 

Leaving the peloton then coming back via a different route has given Tietema a unique perspective on the sport. He is still the same powerful rider he was in his early years but he has found more balance.

“When I was at BMC, cycling was all I had,” he admits. “Now I have the YouTube channel, our website, cycling club and web shop as well next to my cycling career. It gives me energy to travel to races with our staff, with the people that I have become friends with as well.

“The forced end to my first career gave me the ability to try a second career in media. Now the two have come together and reinforce each other. That’s the best thing. There are so many stories to be told from inside the peloton this year. And if, in the end, I do not succeed I don’t have to go on endlessly because I have nothing else in my life.

“Everything has really fallen into place now.” 

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\"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/cycling-sucks-sometimes-what-pogacar-van-der-poel-and-pidcock-said-before-liege-bastogne-liege\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"\u2018cycling sucks sometimes\u2019: what poga\u010dar, van der poel and pidcock said before li\u00e8ge-bastogne-li\u00e8ge\"}}\u0027>\n \u2018cycling sucks sometimes\u2019: what poga\u010dar, van der poel and pidcock said before li\u00e8ge-bastogne-li\u00e8ge\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"gallery: 16 attention grabbing bikes from the sea otter classic","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/16-attention-grabbing-bikes-sea-otter-classic\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/16-attention-grabbing-bikes-sea-otter-classic\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"gallery: 16 attention grabbing bikes from the sea otter classic\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/16-attention-grabbing-bikes-sea-otter-classic\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"gallery: 16 attention grabbing bikes from the sea otter classic\"}}\u0027>\n gallery: 16 attention grabbing bikes from the sea otter classic\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"can ineos grenadiers take it to tadej poga\u010dar at the giro d\u2019italia \u2018our plan is to be aggressive\u2019","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/can-geraint-thomas-stop-tadej-pogacar-at-the-giro-ditalia-our-plan-is-to-be-aggressive\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/can-geraint-thomas-stop-tadej-pogacar-at-the-giro-ditalia-our-plan-is-to-be-aggressive\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"can ineos grenadiers take it to tadej poga\u010dar at the giro d\u2019italia \u2018our plan is to be aggressive\u2019\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/can-geraint-thomas-stop-tadej-pogacar-at-the-giro-ditalia-our-plan-is-to-be-aggressive\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"can ineos grenadiers take it to tadej poga\u010dar at the giro d\u2019italia \u2018our plan is to be aggressive\u2019\"}}\u0027>\n can ineos grenadiers take it to tadej poga\u010dar at the giro d\u2019italia \u2018our plan is to be aggressive\u2019\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"carapaz roars to stage win in tour de romandie as race leader ayuso blows","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/richard-carapaz-roars-to-stage-win-in-tour-de-romandie-as-race-leader-juan-ayuso-blows\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/richard-carapaz-roars-to-stage-win-in-tour-de-romandie-as-race-leader-juan-ayuso-blows\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"carapaz roars to stage win in tour de romandie as race leader ayuso blows\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-racing\/richard-carapaz-roars-to-stage-win-in-tour-de-romandie-as-race-leader-juan-ayuso-blows\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"carapaz roars to stage win in tour de romandie as race leader ayuso blows\"}}\u0027>\n carapaz roars to stage win in tour de romandie as race leader ayuso blows\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"sea otter randoms: riser handlebars, nifty racks, and tubes aren\u2019t dead","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/news\/sea-otter-randoms-riser-handlebars-nifty-racks-and-tubes-arent-dead\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/news\/sea-otter-randoms-riser-handlebars-nifty-racks-and-tubes-arent-dead\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"sea otter randoms: riser handlebars, nifty racks, and tubes aren\u2019t dead\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/news\/sea-otter-randoms-riser-handlebars-nifty-racks-and-tubes-arent-dead\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"sea otter randoms: riser handlebars, nifty racks, and tubes aren\u2019t dead\"}}\u0027>\n sea otter randoms: riser handlebars, nifty racks, and tubes aren\u2019t dead\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"mathieu van der poel realistic about quest for monument sweep: \u2018even with roubaix legs i cannot follow 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\u2018even with roubaix legs i cannot follow poga\u010dar\u2019\"}}\u0027>\n mathieu van der poel realistic about quest for monument sweep: \u2018even with roubaix legs i cannot follow poga\u010dar\u2019\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"xpedo\u2019s new power meter pedals are ready for the spotlight","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/xpedo-new-power-sonik-omni-and-thrust-omni-meter-pedals-sea-otter-classic\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/xpedo-new-power-sonik-omni-and-thrust-omni-meter-pedals-sea-otter-classic\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"xpedo\u2019s new power meter pedals are ready for the spotlight\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/xpedo-new-power-sonik-omni-and-thrust-omni-meter-pedals-sea-otter-classic\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"xpedo\u2019s new power meter pedals are ready for the spotlight\"}}\u0027>\n xpedo\u2019s new power meter pedals are ready for the spotlight\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"8 new shoes from giro, q36.5, shimano, fizik, lake, and crankbrothers","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/8-new-shoes-from-giro-q36-5-shimano-fizik-lake-and-crankbrothers\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/8-new-shoes-from-giro-q36-5-shimano-fizik-lake-and-crankbrothers\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"8 new shoes from giro, q36.5, shimano, fizik, lake, and crankbrothers\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/8-new-shoes-from-giro-q36-5-shimano-fizik-lake-and-crankbrothers\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"8 new shoes from giro, q36.5, shimano, fizik, lake, and crankbrothers\"}}\u0027>\n 8 new shoes from giro, q36.5, shimano, fizik, lake, and crankbrothers\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"highbar wants to revolutionize your helmet straps","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/news\/highbar-wants-to-revolutionize-your-helmet-straps\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/news\/highbar-wants-to-revolutionize-your-helmet-straps\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"highbar wants to revolutionize your helmet straps\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/news\/highbar-wants-to-revolutionize-your-helmet-straps\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"highbar wants to revolutionize your helmet straps\"}}\u0027>\n highbar wants to revolutionize your helmet straps\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"the ritchey montebello brings steel goodness to all-road","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/ritchey-montebello-brings-steel-goodness-to-all-road\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/ritchey-montebello-brings-steel-goodness-to-all-road\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"the ritchey montebello brings steel goodness to all-road\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/ritchey-montebello-brings-steel-goodness-to-all-road\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"the ritchey montebello brings steel goodness to all-road\"}}\u0027>\n the ritchey montebello brings steel goodness to all-road\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"the cadex race integrated bar is as light as it is good looking","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/cadex-race-integrated-bar-first-look\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/cadex-race-integrated-bar-first-look\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"the cadex race integrated bar is as light as it is good looking\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/road\/road-gear\/cadex-race-integrated-bar-first-look\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"the cadex race integrated bar is as light as it is good looking\"}}\u0027>\n the cadex race integrated bar is as light as it is good looking\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"there are three marquee off-road races in the us this weekend. who\u2019s going where and why","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/gravel\/gravel-racing\/best-off-road-races-north-america\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/gravel\/gravel-racing\/best-off-road-races-north-america\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"there are three marquee off-road races in the us this weekend. who\u2019s going where and why\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/gravel\/gravel-racing\/best-off-road-races-north-america\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"there are three marquee off-road races in the us this weekend. who\u2019s going where and why\"}}\u0027>\n there are three marquee off-road races in the us this weekend. who\u2019s going where and why\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "},{"title":"the thesis n1 wants to be your sole drop bar bike for everything","url":"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/gravel\/gravel-gear\/thesis-n1-do-everything-drop-bar-bike\/","markup":" \n \n\n\n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/gravel\/gravel-gear\/thesis-n1-do-everything-drop-bar-bike\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"the thesis n1 wants to be your sole drop bar bike for everything\"}}\u0027>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n\n \n\n \n \n\n \n \n >\", \"path\": \"https:\/\/velo.outsideonline.com\/gravel\/gravel-gear\/thesis-n1-do-everything-drop-bar-bike\/\", \"listing_type\": \"recirc\", \"location\": \"list\", \"title\": \"the thesis n1 wants to be your sole drop bar bike for everything\"}}\u0027>\n the thesis n1 wants to be your sole drop bar bike for everything\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n "}]' > >", "name": "footer-menu", "type": "link"}}'>advertise >", "name": "footer-menu", "type": "link"}}'>privacy policy >", "name": "footer-menu", "type": "link"}}'>contact >", 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See who won YouTube qualifier for Myrtle Beach Classic

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Several popular YouTubers had a chance to earn a spot at the inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic via “The Q at Myrtle Beach,” a 16-player, 18-hole qualifier that included YouTubers such as Grant Horvat, Peter Finch, Micah Morris and George Bryan IV.

Veteran Korn Ferry Tour pro Matt Atkins won the qualifier and will compete on TOUR next month in his home state of South Carolina. Atkins appears frequently in Bryan Bros Golf YouTube content (a joint venture between George and his brother, Wesley), where Atkins, 33, is known affectionately as “Crashkins” – a term that often appears in comments when he is covered on TOUR and Korn Ferry Tour social channels.

Bryan IV didn't make it easy for Atkins, though. Bryan led by two strokes to the par-5 18th hole but hit a wedge into the water and made bogey. Atkins drained a 15-foot birdie at No. 18 to match Bryan's 3-under 69, requiring a playoff hole, again the par-5 18th. Atkins won with a birdie on the first playoff hole, earning the Myrtle Beach Classic's sponsor exemption that was awarded via "The Q."

Tyler Watts finished in third place at 1-under 71, while Scott Stevens and Jay Card tied for fourth at even-par 72. Finch and Turk Pettit shared sixth place at 1-over 73. Other scores included Morgan Deneen (74), Dan Rapaport (76), Ryan Wilkinson (76), Jamie Wilson (77), Luke Kwon (78), Grant Horvat (79), Fat Perez (81), Cole Lantz (83) and Micah Morris (86).

The inaugural Myrtle Beach Classic will be contested May 9-12 at The Dunes Golf and Beach Club in Myrtle Beach, as an Additional Event alongside the Wells Fargo Championship. “The Q” was contested last month, with players capturing content for their personal social channels but withholding results until Tuesday, with a full-length feature video released on the Play Golf Myrtle Beach YouTube channel.

Atkins has made 157 career Korn Ferry Tour starts, including a victory at the 2017 El Bosque Mexico Championship, which propelled him to his first TOUR card via the 2017 Korn Ferry Tour season-long standings. He is playing this season on conditional Korn Ferry Tour status; he will compete at this week’s Veritex Bank Championship after successfully Monday qualifying. He also Monday qualified for the TOUR’s Mexico Open at Vidanta earlier this year (his 26th career TOUR start), and he finished T38 at The RSM Classic last fall as a Monday qualifier, where he spoke emotionally about what it means to pursue a professional golf career amidst financial uncertainty.

Atkins will have no status uncertainty next month in South Carolina. He’ll compete at the Myrtle Beach Classic via “The Q.”

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[WATCH] Dallas Cowboys First-Round NFL Draft Pick Tyler Guyton Arrives In Frisco

Guyton was all smiles as he took a tour around ‘The Star,’ soaking in the Super Bowl rings and the Lombardi Trophies in the lobby. 

• Author: Bri Amaranthus

In this story:

FRISCO - The Dallas Cowboys’ first-round NFL Draft selection Tyler Guyton has arrived the Cowboys headquarters in Frisco. Guyton was all smiles as he took a tour around ‘The Star,’ soaking in the Super Bowl rings and the Lombardi Trophies in the lobby. 

Dallas Cowboys fans, meet your new offensive tackle Tyler Guyton. Guyton JUST arrived at Cowboys HQ in Frisco. He’s 6-foot-8, 330-pounds. Grew up a Cowboys fan, idolizes Tyron Smith. #DallasCowboys #CowboysNation #CowboysDraft pic.twitter.com/ZMMgaZqGrS — Bri Amaranthus (@BriAmaranthus) April 26, 2024

Guyton has the chance to make an impact right away for the Cowboys, who lost longtime star left tackle Tyron Smith this offseason to the New York Jets.

Guyton grew up as a Cowboys fan and idolizes Smith :

“I feel like those are big shoes to fill from such a legendary tackle, but I'm going to work my ass off to do the best that I can,” Guyton said. “I was a big Tyron Smith fan my whole life because he plays for my team. He plays for my favorite team and once I started playing the offensive line position, knowing that he's one of the best to ever do it, was kind of amazing for me.”

New Dallas Cowboys Tyler Guyton gets first tour of the Star in Frisco 🤠 Guyton grew up a Cowboys fan and looked overwhelmed to see Troy Aikman’s plaque. #CowboysNation #CowboysDraft #DallasCowboys pic.twitter.com/9OyZQy851S — Bri Amaranthus (@BriAmaranthus) April 26, 2024

The 2024 NFL Draft continues Friday with coverage of the second and third rounds starting at 4 p.m. PT. The fourth through seventh rounds will begin at 9 a.m. PT on Saturday, April 27.

Dallas has gone 12-5 in three consecutive seasons under  coach Mike McCarthy . With one  NFL Playoff  win during those three seasons , the Cowboys look to improve the roster.

The Cowboys are throwing an NFL Draft  party at The Star in Frisco from Thursday, April 25 - Saturday, April 27. 

Fans can watch the draft coverage live on the jumbo screen at The Star while also enjoying performances by the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and Dallas Cowboys Rhythm & Blue, a live DJ, food and beverage offerings. There will also be Dallas Cowboys player autograph signing opportunities. 

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TikTok Food Critic Keith Lee Is Back in His Hometown of Detroit and Ready to Eat

The self-proclaimed TikTok critic is looking to visit local restaurants that could use his magic touch — though he didn’t realize the city was hosting the NFL Draft

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Share All sharing options for: TikTok Food Critic Keith Lee Is Back in His Hometown of Detroit and Ready to Eat

Guess who’s back in Detroit? Keith Lee, one of the most viral names in online food reviewing and a native son of the Motor City, raised in the Joy Road and Evergreen area on the westside, has arrived in the city and is ready to eat. The TikTok personality returned with his family for a visit this week and is asking for recommendations of local restaurants that want to be reviewed.

It’s a busy time to go check out restaurants in Detroit, as Lee pointed out in a post published Thursday, April 25. There’s the NFL Draft taking place downtown (which is already breaking attendance records with a whopping 275,000 visitors who descended upon the central business district on Day One of the Draft). Helping to kick off the football festivities, another Detroit native, Big Sean, delighted fans Thursday with a quick performance on the Draft stage.

In light of the chaos overtaking much of the city’s hospitality industry during the Draft, Lee says he’s not treating this trip as a “full food tour,” but is rather taking this time to revisit some of his beloved childhood favorites, like coneys, corned beef egg rolls, and Better Made chips.

Lee wasted no time with the taste-testing, first stopping by Hart Plaza — the NFL Draft Experience area site, where dozens of local restaurants, food trucks, and cafes are set up for the festivities. He appreciated the fact that many of the food vendors were Black-owned. He offered a sneak peek of what he’s getting into food-wise during this current visit by checking out a tray of wings from Good Vibes Lounge . He reported that the East English Village establishment had just gotten hit (presumably by a car) and that the ownership was feeling “defeated.”

“God willingly, she got a space here at the NFL Draft,” Lee says, before he displays a screenshot of Good Vibe Lounge’s Instagram account to let viewers know how to find the neighborhood bar and restaurant.

“God don’t make no mistakes,” added Lee, who is known for his spiritual take on his so-called “ Keith Lee effect .” Eater has reached out to Lee via email about his visit and will report any updates when they become available.

Lee has become a household fixture among the food-obsessed for his food tours in cities across the United States, including San Francisco , New Orleans , Dallas , Chicago , and Atlanta — a destination that went viral for its many dramatic instances of bad experiences. A native Detroiter, who now lives in Las Vegas, Lee has more than 16 million followers and makes it a point to visit smaller mom-and-pop establishments — often that are BIPOC-owned — that may have impressive menus, but that might be lacking in online presence. His visits are unannounced and are primarily takeout. He often sends in a family member to fetch the food when it’s ready so as not to attract attention. He rates each place 1 to 10 for customer service and the quality of the food, and makes sure to note his personal preferences whenever he scores. When he first started, he focused on Vegas-area restaurants and did his reviews while sitting in a tiny children’s-sized Paw Patrol chair, and now he most often films his reviews in his car.

The “Keith Lee effect” that his reviews have on small businesses is profound. Janel Prator, owner of the Puddery , a Houston-area dessert business featuring Prator’s creamy banana pudding, told Eater in a December 2023 report that her shop was struggling to take off before a review Lee did his did of her place in November. His influence was immediate business took off, with customers lined up from the front door eager to try her desserts.

The last time Lee paid a visit to his hometown was in September when he reviewed several beloved local food businesses, including the Spot food truck, which, according to Lee’s review, had contacted him on social media to invite him to check out its food. He ordered a steak crunchwrap supreme with Hot Cheetos (on the side) and gave the truck a rave review for its service, house-made “Turbo” sauce, and commented that the meat was seasoned to perfection. Similar to Prator’s experience, the Spot also reported traffic snaked around its truck in the days after Lee’s review went live.

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TPC Louisiana

No drama in Hollywood as Hannah Green easily defends JM Eagle crown to collect fifth LPGA victory

There was no drama in Hollywood at Hannah Green's title defense of the JM Eagle LA Championship. Unlike her playoff victory last year , Green won by three Sunday over Maja Stark with a steady five-under 67 to win at 12-under-par total. The Australian ran away from the field with a five-under-par stretch on the back nine to seal her second victory of the season. Here is how Green defended her title.

Leaderboard

Win: Hannah Green (-12)

2: Maja Stark (-9)

3: Hae Ran Ryu (-6)

T-4: Jin Young Ko (-5)

T-4: Jin Hee Im (-5)

RELATED: Here’s the prize money payout for each golfer at the JM Eagle LA Championship

What it means

Put simply, Green dominates at Wilshire Country Club. Only three players have beaten the 27-year-old at the course since 2021: she finished T-3 in 2021, runner-up in 2022, and won the last two seasons.

Green became the second multi-time winner on tour this season, having also won the HSBC Women's World Championship in March. Nelly Korda, of course, is the only multi-winner this year, now deep in the middle of a five-in-a-row win streak. Green is the first player to defend a title since Jin Young Ko at last year's HSBC Championship. This year is Green's second multi-victory season, following 2019 when she won the KPMG Women's PGA Championship. This is Green’s fifth career win.

Green's title is the ninth of 10 events this year won by past tour winners. It marks a continued reversion to the mean from the 2022 and 2023 campaigns, which had 11 and 12 first-time winners, respectively.

How it happened

Grace Kim's difficult 76-77 weekend let the field back in. The 2023 Lotte Championship winner held a four-stroke lead at 12 under par on Saturday morning and was tied for the 54-hole lead with Green. Kim fell out of contention with four bogeys on the front nine Sunday, ending up at T-25 (-1).

Green went out in even Sunday as the rest of the field didn't advance on her seven-under lead. She started her break away from the pack with a chip-in birdie on the par-3 12th.

"I think when I chipped in on 12, I kind of felt like I really snagged one there," Green said. She followed up with another birdie on the par-5 13th for the first two-stroke lead of the back nine.

Stark trailed Green and Kim by a stroke at the start of the final round, continuing her strong play after a runner-up performance at the Chevron Championship. Like Green, Stark played the front nine at even par. The Swede birdied the par-5 13th and got lucky on the par-5 15th. She thinned her bunker shot from behind the green off the flagstick, and somehow the ball ended three feet from the pin. The birdie brought her back within a stroke at eight under.

But just as soon as Stark got close, Green effectively won the tournament. She eagled the 459-yard 15th with a 20-footer from the fringe while Stark bogeyed from the greenside bunker on the 16th in front of her, building a four-stroke edge.

"When I made eagle on 15, that kind of sealed the deal," Green said. "And I did see that Maja got it to nine under. So I knew what I needed to do to do."

Green punctuated the charge with a birdie on the 16th, capping off a five-under run to separate herself from the field. With the tournament in Green's hand after parring the 18th, she was greeted by raucous chants of "Aussie, Aussie, Aussie" from the fans surrounding the green.

Green's chance to make it three-in-a-row at Wilshire Country Club will be delayed until 2026, as the course will undergo renovations and will not host the JM Eagle next year.

"It's [the course] really kind to me," Green said. "I felt like a couple of times today, I almost got like a member bounce. I obviously am really fond of the golf club and I joked and said that they didn't actually approve it with me that they're making alterations, but no, I love it here. Such a great atmosphere, really good crowds this year. So yeah, I'm kind of sad we're not returning next year, but I'm looking forward to 2026."

Best of the rest

World No. 7 Jin Young Ko (T-3) carded a bogey-free four-under 67 Sunday to leap up the leaderboard from T-21 for her best finish of the season.

Haeran Ryu posted her third straight top 10, including a T-9 at the LPGA Match Play and a fifth-place finish at the Chevron Championship.

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She could end the show with the "TTPD" set, but "Karma" is also a good show closer. Other than those two options, she could place "TTPD" after "Reputation" and before "Speak Now" or also right before "Midnights."

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Follow Taylor Swift reporter Bryan West on  Instagram ,  TikTok  and  X as @BryanWestTV .

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