Ripoff Ireland fears are confirmed as Americans shun Ryder Cup tickets
According to some at the event, those worries were well founded and one seasoned golf writer from the US said several of the larger city newspapers and specialist publications were notable by their absence because the costs were considered too high.
“A lot of the tour operators had spare capacity coming over here,” said the writer, who asked not to be named. “I’ll put it this way: Ryder Cup tickets were not the most difficult tickets to get your hands on this year.”
Among the complaints were the doubling of hotel room rates from other times of the year, exorbitant taxi fees and extortionate bus transfer charges.
“Because the Ryder Cup accommodation services were based in the UK, we were getting prices in pounds sterling. People staying at one hotel were charged £250 for the bus transfer from hotel to course for the week. That’s $455 which you have to pay because there’s no other way to get to the course. On average at home, you’d pay $20 a day so, say, $100 for the tournament,” the writer said.
A “breakfast not included” policy in some hotels angered many Americans, as did strict check-out time rules.
“The one thing that has improved on other times I’ve been here is that hotel internet connections have improved and they’re beginning to provide them free, which is the norm in the States.”
Other visitors also had complaints about prices, but they said it did not ruin their enjoyment of the tournament.
Norm Collins, originally from Derry city but living in Toronto, Canada, for the past 46 years, had a near miss with an attempted rip-off after his Drogheda hotel tried to charge him double the price he was quoted.
“I couldn’t get any closer to the venue even though I tried for nine months, so I was glad to find this hotel about three months ago,” said Norm, who booked for himself, his wife, son and daughter- in-law.
“They gave me a price and took my credit card number and everything, but a month or so later I got a call saying that they hadn’t realised the Ryder Cup was on and they had to raise up my room rate. They hadn’t realised? They wanted to double the price.
“I knew I wouldn’t get anywhere else to stay but it bothered me so much that the next day I rang and insisted on talking to the reservations manager and when I explained how unhappy I was, he said that shouldn’t have happened and that not only would we get our rooms at the original price, but we would get upgrades to the best rooms in the hotel.
“They’re beautiful, the food is great and everyone is really nice but lucky I phoned back. If I hadn’t questioned it, I’d be paying twice the price.”
Not even US captain Tom Lehman’s group were immune from the effects of transatlantic inflation. Cindy Carpenter, a personal friend and neighbour of the Lehmans in Scotsdale, Arizona, travelled with his family and friends on a package deal and were staying in Newbridge, Co Kildare.
“We’ve been to the Masters and the US Open and I think generally prices are slightly higher — maybe 10%-20% more than at home — but they’re not outrageous. I would definitely come back — we’ve had a lot of fun,” she said.
For the independent traveller there were other hurdles to overcome.
“We booked our own flights and accommodation and we got our tickets independently and thought we were very well organised,” said Trudy Hare from Bath in England, who took a taxi from central Dublin.
“It cost €19 to the edge of the meter zone and when we arrived at the park-and-ride 10 minutes down the road, the cost was €55. That can’t be fair.”
“We’ve heard since that people were charged €100 for the same taxi trip we took the first day. It’s tempting to pay it, especially going home, because after a full day here, standing and walking, you don’t want to face an hour and a half’s travel back to the city.”
