Golf chief defends ticket price increase at The Open: "We have to cover those costs"
R&A chief executive Mark Darbon has explained why he believes ticket prices for the 2027 Open Championship at reasonable.
The chief executive of the Royal & Ancient has defended increasing ticket prices for next year's Open Championship at St Andrews.
Golf's oldest major heads to the home of golf in 2027, with spectators expected to pay up to £190 to attend Sunday's final round.
Ticket prices announced in June will range from £40 to £70 for adult practice-day admission, while tickets for Thursday and Friday's opening rounds will cost £150.
Saturday admission has been set at £170, rising to £190 for the final day.
Discounted tickets will be available for spectators aged 16 to 24, while children under 16 will continue to receive free admission.
The prices represent an increase on this year's championship at Royal Birkdale, where practice-day tickets started at £30 and competition-day admission began at £130. Final-round tickets were priced at £150 through the ballot.
R&A chief executive Mark Darbon said rising demand for tickets, alongside increased costs associated with staging the championship, had contributed to the price increases.
More than one million applications were submitted for tickets to this year's event, underlining the growing interest in attending golf's oldest major.
"Demand has definitely picked up," Darbon told the BBC.
"Support is growing and more people are picking up a club and engaging with the game."
He said spectators wanted to watch the world's leading players compete, while the R&A continued to invest in improving the experience for those attending the championship.
Darbon also highlighted the rising cost of delivering the event, including expenditure on infrastructure, security and other essential services.
He said the cost of staging The Open had increased by approximately 25 per cent over the past five or six years, adding between £10 million and £12 million to the overall expense.
"There's a reality that we have to cover those costs," he said.
The R&A expects next year's championship at St Andrews to attract more than the record 306,000 spectators who attended this year's event at Royal Birkdale.
The Old Course last hosted The Open in 2022, when Cameron Smith won the Claret Jug after finishing one shot ahead of Cameron Young and two clear of Rory McIlroy.
New Zealand's Ryan Fox is the reigning Open champion.
Ben Smith joined the GolfMagic team in September 2021, initially as a content executive.
These days, he assumes the position of content manager.
