Hospitality, Ticket Sales Down For British Open At Turnberry
 |
Daily Ticket Prices For This
Year's Open Won't Change |
The R&A, which stages the British Open, yesterday addressed hospitality sales and future issues regarding sponsorship and TV rights during its annual media conference. Hospitality sales are down 15-20% from '08, comparable to most pro golf tournaments. The R&A renewed a deal with Lexus to supply courtesy cars and expects RBS to fulfill its sponsorship deal through at least '10 despite massive cuts to its sponsorship budget. R&A CEO Peter Dawson: “RBS are going to continue in sports sponsorship in years forward (and) we very much hope the Open remains part of that.” Dawson also refused to rule out the Open moving from the BBC to satellite TV when its current deal expires in '11. The R&A did not announce prize money for this year’s event, but indicated it could be even with last year’s total of $8.6M, thanks to the economic downturn and the increase in value of the U.S. dollar comparable to European currency (Jon Show, SportsBusiness Journal). The R&A yesterday also announced that daily ticket prices for this year’s British Open will remain unchanged from last year “because of the global economic crisis” (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 4/21). Meanwhile, drug testing will be held during the British Open for the first time this year. Dawson said that the event would be "subject to the same anti-doping procedures that have been taking place for the past year on the main world tours" (REUTERS, 4/21).
FIGHTING THE RECESSION: In Manchester, Ewan Murray reports the R&A is “facing the prospect of the lowest Open attendance in 15 years,” and the organization “will send letters to every golf club in Scotland and the north of England offering to pay [US$366.37] towards any coach that brings 30 people or more” to this year’s British Open at Turnberry. The move comes in response to the financial crisis, which has seen corporate bookings for the tournament “down by as much as 20% with no premium-priced hospitality taken up at all to date.” Turnberry traditionally “does not attract as high crowds as other venues, with the R&A admitting their initial aim is to at least match the 115,000 people who paid for entry the last time the championship took place there, in 1994” (Manchester GUARDIAN, 4/22).
TOURNAMENT NOT MOVING: In London, Mark Garrad notes Dawson yesterday “dismissed as ‘media hype’ a report that nearby Royal Troon had been put on standby because of concerns over whether renovation work at Turnberry’s five-star hotel would be completed on time.” Meanwhile, Dawson said of the prize money for the event, “We have a duty to maintain the event at the forefront of world golf and prize-money is part of that equation” (London INDEPENDENT, 4/22).
|
