New knowledge, launched at this time by the DP World Tour, The R&A and the Girls European Tour, has proven that the largest golf tournaments in Nice Britain and Eire (GB&I) have skilled a powerful surge in reputation in 2023 in comparison with pre-COVID-19 pandemic ranges, as ticket gross sales and spectator numbers proceed to rise.
The DP World Tour has loved a 43% enhance in its revenues for normal admission and premium hospitality tickets for its tournaments in 2023, in comparison with pre-pandemic ranges in 2019. For the Tour’s 4 most historic occasions in GB&I particularly, the numbers are as follows:
- The BMW PGA Championship noticed normal admission and premium hospitality ticket revenues enhance by 41% in 2023 in comparison with 2019. A complete variety of 109,635 spectators attended the match this 12 months, a 22% enhance on 2022.
- The Genesis Scottish Open noticed normal admission and premium hospitality ticket revenues enhance by 117% in 2023 in comparison with 2019. A complete variety of 72,517 spectators attended the match this 12 months, a 5% enhance on 2022.
- The Horizon Irish Open noticed normal admission and premium hospitality ticket revenues enhance by 98% in 2023 in comparison with 2019. A complete variety of 70,672 spectators attended the match this 12 months, a 13% enhance on 2022.
- The Betfred British Masters hosted by Sir Nick Faldo noticed normal admission and premium hospitality ticket revenues enhance by 8% in 2023 in comparison with 2019. A complete of 47,073 spectators attended the match this 12 months, in comparison with 49,787 in 2022.
- Attendance figures for all 4 tournaments stood at 299,897, an 11% enhance on 2022.
The Open, organised by The R&A, has set file attendances at each venue since 2017, with all Championship days bought out since 2019. A complete of 261,180 spectators attended The 151st Open at Royal Liverpool this 12 months, which is the second highest attendance on file and a 30% enhance on 2014 when the venue final hosted the Championship. The rising reputation of golf’s unique championship led to the introduction of a poll for normal admission tickets in 2022 to assist handle the rising demand.
The R&A is dedicated to making sure that The Open stays reasonably priced for younger folks with 30,000 followers below the age of 25 attending the Championship this 12 months because of decreased value youth tickets and free junior tickets. The variety of junior tickets distributed because the Youngsters Go Free initiative began at Royal Troon in 1997 surpassed the 400,000 mark this 12 months.
The AIG Girls’s Open at Walton Heath noticed comparable success. A complete of 51,000 followers have been in attendance throughout the week, up from 33,303 the earlier 12 months, displaying a 53% enhance. The spectator expertise on the Championship was enhanced by the launch of a brand new fan village and staging of a music live performance by international celebrity, Ellie Goulding.
The Girls European Tour has additionally seen will increase in spectator numbers for its occasions in GB&I this 12 months. The KPMG Irish Open loved a formidable 20% enhance in spectator numbers in 2023 in comparison with 2022, and the Aramco Crew Sequence in London noticed a 12% enhance this 12 months in comparison with 2022. The FREED GROUP Girls’s Scottish Open noticed its spectator numbers attain 10,000 in 2023, the same stage to 2022.
This follows on from the continued rise within the variety of folks taking part in golf in GB&I. Knowledge from The R&A[1], printed in March 2023, exhibits that golf participation sits nicely above the charges within the years previous to the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2019, there have been 3.7 million on-course grownup golfers in GB&I. As of 2022, that has grown to five.6 million – a 50% enhance.
Talking in regards to the knowledge Keith Pelley, Chief Government of the DP World Tour, stated: “Golf is booming in reputation and attracting a extra numerous following. The numbers again this up and the DP World Tour’s greatest occasions in GB&I’ve by no means been extra in style. We have now additionally loved the same pattern for our historic nationwide Opens throughout Europe. Golf’s outside nature meant folks tried the game in file numbers in 2020, and the DP World Tour is now benefiting from this. Golfers of all ages need to see the perfect gamers on the earth showcase their expertise and we’re centered on ensuring that our spectator expertise matches their expectations.”
Martin Slumbers, CEO of The R&A, added: The Open and AIG Girls’s Open are main international sporting occasions and we’re seeing folks attend our championships in better numbers than ever earlier than. That is the results of a extra focused method to advertising and ticketing which has enabled us to deepen the connection with our followers and communicate to them immediately by means of interesting membership initiatives like The One Membership.
“We frequently have a look at methods to reinforce the staging of our championships in order that they enchantment to folks of all ages, notably households and younger folks, and supply leisure and worth for cash. Folks journey right here from everywhere in the world to see the perfect golfers on the earth compete for the game’s best championships and we place nice significance on making certain that followers depart The Open and AIG Girls’s Open with reminiscences that may final for a lifetime.”
