The infamous ‘Tiger Effect’ is in full force — which means higher ticket prices for one of golfing’s premier events.
Tiger Woods, who has staged an unlikely comeback and finished in the top five of the last two golf tournaments, has helped fuel a surge in demand for tickets to the Masters.
Tickets are averaging close to $2000, making this year’s Masters the third most expensive sporting event of the year, ticket reseller Vivid Seats said Friday, placing it behind Super Bowl 52 and the College Football National Championship.
This year’s ticket costs for a spot at Augusta National is 50 percent higher than it was in 2015, when Woods finished in 17th place. Woods has sat out each of the last two years, and the ticket price is 19 percent higher this year than last year.
Despite Woods’ lackluster performance Thursday, the get-in price for Sunday is a whopping $2195. On Vivid’s website, a ticket ranges from $260 for a cheap seat to a wallet-busting $6500.
“Tiger Woods is always a huge draw in the golf world,” Vivid Seats said of the increase in demand. The boost in prices “not only an excitement for people to see him play in the Masters for the first time since 2015, but the expectation that he has a chance to win for the first time since 2005,” it added.
Woods isn’t the only golfer to impact ticket demand and sales, though. The solid play of younger, promising golfers — such as Jordan Spieth, Rickie Fowler, and Rory McIlroy — may also play a role in rising demand.
“It’s a perfect storm for ticket prices to soar: the return of golf’s biggest name and the emergence of a new generation of stars,” Vivid Seats added.
