If you can imagine two MCGs crammed full, that's how many people greeted Grace Kim, Karl Vilips and the rest of the Australian Youth Olympic team at the weekend.
The Saturday night opening ceremony in the main precinct of Buenos Aires, Argentina, was a sight to behold and Kim, of Sydney, and Vilips, of Perth, were "blown away" by the experience, as were their 86 other Australian teammates at the magnitude of the occasion.
Golf manager Stacey Peters said her team was also able to get down close to the formal stage.
"They absolutely loved it! They were all right in among all the athletes, it was so cool," Peters said.
"The ceremony was something I've never seen before- I thought an AFL or NRL Grand final had a lot of people and atmosphere, but there was double those crowds and more!
"The athletes will have memories from this week that will last a lifetime."
As preparations for the golf, which starts Wednesday (Australian time), continue in earnest, Peters said she had been encouraging Vilips and Kim to see as many other events as possible and support their Aussie teammates and eating with athletes from other countries in the village.
"I'm so excited that golfers now can enjoy this experience," she said.
"The challenges of logistics and organising the requirements of all the different sports makes it a different experience for us, but we wouldn't change a thing.
"The overall experience is worth every bit of it and it's such a great honour to represent Australia at any time."
The golf tournament will be played at the Hurlingham Club in the north-western suburbs with 54-hole stroke play events for both men and women.
But, in addition to that, after a day off on (Australian) Saturday, Kim and Vilips will unite for another 54-hole mixed team event that features rounds of fourball, foursomes and individual play to reach a team total.
Peters said both athletes were "feeling good" about their prospects.
"Grace is excited to get going. Like all of us, she's had such a different week to normal with so many fun distractions, but she's ready to put that aside and get into it.
"Karl is feeling really good about his game. His iron play is really solid and, with his length, could really capitalise on some short par-fives."