PGA Tour faces backlash after US$750 Ryder Cup tickets
The PGA of America is facing backlash and accusations of pricing out fans, with a single day ticket for the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, New York, costing just under US$750.
Golf fans can attempt to purchase tickets by entering the event’s Random Selection.
If successfully selected for an opportunity to buy a ticket, entry to any of the Cup’s three competition days will set you back $749.51 per person.
Prices for practice days earlier in the week start at US$255.27.
These “Ryder Cup+” tickets give attendees “access to unlimited food and non-alcoholic beverages at all market concessions throughout the grounds and no extra cost,” according to the Ryder Cup website. For comparison, a similar package in the first round of next year’s PGA Championship is currently available for US$219.
Meanwhile, general admission tickets for the 2023 edition of the Ryder Cup at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club near Rome were between €50 (US$52.97) and €60 (US$63.56) for the practice days, €250 (US$264.83) for Friday and Saturday tickets and €260 (US$275.42) for Sunday.
The PGA of America has received criticism online for the steep prices.
“I would like to go on the record now and say that if Europe wins the Ryder Cup at Bethpage because the crowds were turned into a polite snooze fest like LACC (Los Angeles Country Club) by the insane ticket prices, it’s going to go down as a massive own goal,” golf journalist Kevin Van Valkenburg wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
“I need to sign a LIV deal so I can afford Ryder Cup tickets,” joked GOLF.com’s Claire Rogers.
The prices have also not gone down well with fans.
“What are better things to do with your money than pay this amount for Ryder Cup Tickets? Seriously, the Ryder Cup is not good from a spectator’s standpoint. I guess even the Ryder Cup is not immune from inflation,” one user posted on X.
“This is going to be 90 per cent corporate buyers. Nobody normal is paying US$800 for a Ryder cup ticket,” added another.
CNN has reached out to the PGA of America for comment.
The Ryder Cup is held every two years and pits Europe and the USA against each other as two teams made up of the biggest names in men’s golf clash for the chance to earn bragging rights in an iconic rivalry.
Team Europe is the reigning champion after it held off a late comeback from the Americans to win 16.5 – 11.5 in Rome, Italy, last year.
