DP World Tour report record ticket sales across biggest summer events

The BMW PGA Championship, the Genesis Scottish Open, the Horizon Irish Open and the Betfred British Masters all experienced huge ticket sales increases.

Matt Chivers's picture
Wed, 21 Sep 2022
DP World Tour report record ticket sales across biggest summer events

The DP World Tour has enjoyed record ticket sales across its key summer events in 2022, as demand has significantly grown for some of golf's most prestigious titles.

Across the BMW PGA Championship, the Genesis Scottish Open, the Horizon Irish Open and the Betfred British Masters, there were 20 sold-out days for general admission tickets and hospitality.

The flagship event at Wentworth, which was won by Shane Lowry, saw a 30% increase in ticket sales compared to 2021. Three of the four competition days were sold out in an event that was cut short due to the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

14 of the top 15 players in the world played at the Genesis Scottish Open. The event also saw a 12% increase in ticket sales compared to pre-Covid sales in 2019.

July's Horizon Irish Open saw a 40% increase in ticket sales compared to 2019. For the first time in the event's history, weekend tickets were sold out.

The final day of the Betfred British Masters sold out and there was a 4% increase in ticket sales from 2019. Thorbjorn Olesen won for the sixth time in his DP World Tour career at The Belfry.

Attendance figures for all four of these tournaments came to 271,000. The ticketing success led to a 32% increase in ticketing and hospitality revenue compared to 2019.

These tournaments also enjoyed a larger engagement with golf fans on social media. Their dedicated tournament channels saw a 66% growth in follower numbers since 2019.

The DP World Tour fanbase has also increased in diversity too. Compared to 2019, there has been a 39% increase in the number of female ticket purchasers.

"Golf has enjoyed a significant boom in popularity since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic with its outdoor nature allowing an earlier return to action than most sports - helping to attract new fans to the game," said Keith Pelley, the CEO of the Tour.

"The DP World Tour has worked hard to make sure that we utilise this momentum and find innovative ways to attract new fans to our tournaments.

"We have enjoyed a record summer of golf, with big name players competing for record prize funds and spectators have turned out in record numbers to watch.

"The DP World Tour has never been in such a strong position, and we expect this momentum to continue into the final few months of the 2022 season with November’s DP World Tour Championship in Dubai already enjoying record registrations to attend."