A year after the controversy in Rome over players’ compensation, the PGA of America is now facing backlash for selling $750 tickets. Bob Harig warns that this decision could jeopardize the integrity of the event. With prices continuing to rise, Harig suggests that such high ticket costs could alienate fans and foster a sense of exclusivity that undermines the true spirit of the game. The tickets to witness golf only keep getting more expensive with each passing year.

Take the 2025 Ryder Cup for instance. If you wish to watch the match in person, the tickets announced by the PGA of America cost a staggering $750 daily. A lot of people raised concerns, and this also enraged the fans. Even the former POTUS Donald Trump stated, “Fans are being shut out and it’s terrible,” because no one would spend that much money to watch a golfing game. Now, it looks like there is one more fire ignited.

The Ryder Cup was first held in 1927 at the Worcester Country Club in Worcester, Massachusetts. This means for nearly a century now generations of golf enthusiasts have been enjoying the international event. Now, with the tickets having become so expensive, one of the fans took to Reddit and vented about how “middle-class” golfers were being excluded. 

“Open post to the folks that run the Ryder Cup congrats you managed to keep the middle-class golfer out of your tournament.” The user also went on to add how his wife always wanted to attend the event, and despite receiving the notice that they have access to the tickets for the opening day, the price is so high that they will not be able to attend.“You are idiots. I wish there was enough gumption in the golf world for the majority of us to tell you to go to hell and boycott your event,” he added.

The tickets for the event to be hosted at Bethpage just covered the access to the field. There will be additional charges for travel, accommodation, and any souvenirs. This, as the fan revealed would amount to approximately $3000 to $4000 per day.  “You people are out of touch and have no clue who your audience is. Or maybe you do. Which is even sadder,” he concluded.

The post once again caused huge chaos in the golfing community. Most of them, naturally, sided with the frustrated fan and began–once more–protesting for the higher ticket prices.

The golf community yearns for golf to get more affordable

Amid the rift going on in the golf world, and with the number of spectators already declining, the game of golf should be made more accessible. But instead, the $750 daily tickets and $400 volunteer fees tell a different story. The RyderCup+ ticket is more than five times as expensive as the cheapest daily ticket for this year’s Masters and the US Open, both of which start at $140 (£107). Tickets to the Open started at £110 on tournament days, with the USPGA $148 (£113), rising slightly for Sunday.

Taking to this, while one of them wrote, “…there is enough demand for them to charge this amount and not care lol. It sucks, but golf has some of the richest fans out of any sport. Good luck protesting.” Another sarcastically added that compared to these massive prices, the time when the PGA Championship tickets were priced at $300 (which was hated upon then) looked like a good deal. “Going to the PGA Championship was like $300 for a Saturday pass. That now feels like a good deal”.

According to Statista, golf fans generally have a higher income compared to other sports fans. Moreover, according to a 2020 report by Golf Digest, nearly 50% of golfers in the U.S. have household incomes of $100,000 or more, significantly higher than the national average. To add to that, the PGA Tour fan base has an average age group of 35 to 54, with an average income of $115,000. Taking to this, one of them wrote, “We know. This has been discussed over and over since the prices were revealed a long time ago.” Only 13% of PGA Tour fans identify as lower income, and hence tickets would still sell out. Which means this circle will never end. And this fan knows that. “Unfortunately, too many golf bros will get tickets.”

The Ryder Cup has been like a celebration with the prestigious event ongoing between the European Team and the American Team. This is also regarded as one of the most significant events of men’s golf, and even the selection process takes two whole seasons. Needless to say, the atmosphere is eclectic throughout the matches. However, the price is way too expensive. One of them even wrote, “Yeah I agree. I have day 1 access too and aren’t gonna bother. I’ve been to two and they are incredible but the atmosphere makes them special. The money grabbing will keep all the fans away.”

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