Golf is one of the most expensive sports to play, with the average round running $61 in the U.S., and many clubs charging thousands of dollars to join. But there is something at one of the most famous golf clubs in the world that won’t take a huge bite out of your budget, at least.
The food!
The menu at Augusta National Golf Club, where the Masters is played, is not only cheap compared to the typically high-priced concessions at sporting events; it’s about as cheap as any restaurant anywhere.
Its famous pimento cheese sandwich is only $1.50. (No, the decimal isn’t in the wrong place.) An egg salad sandwich is also just $1.50. In fact, no food item costs more than $3.
A $6 white wine is the most expensive item on the menu, and a beer is only $5. By comparison, the average NFL stadium charges roughly $10 for a 16-ounce beer. You could buy one of every item on the Masters menu for less than $70 total.
Over the past two years, inflation has led to a major surge in food prices for things including eggs, meats, butter and lettuce. So why are food prices at the Masters so low?
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“For the vast majority of businesses, we assume business owners are profit maximizers, which means they are in the business of squeezing every last dollar they can out of their customers,” Victor Matheson, economics professor at the College of the Holy Cross, told MarketWatch. “In sports, we don’t necessarily see that.”
“It’s possible people try to maximize something other than dollars and cents. That’s what we see at the Masters,” Matheson added.
He suspects that the Masters may be “trying to cement their place and buy the love of the golf fans,” by keeping food and beverage prices low. “The people who are members at Augusta are fabulously wealthy,” Matheson said. “Making a few extra bucks on a BLT isn’t going to change their net wealth much, but it does buy them the love of sports fans, and buys the Masters this very special place it has.”
Representatives from Augusta National did not respond to MarketWatch’s request for comment on this story. In 2019, a spokesperson for the club told Fox News that it offered low concession prices, as well as free parking, to provide affordable experiences to attendees.
But instead of comparing going to the Masters to attending a typical sporting event, it probably makes more sense to think of going to the Masters like buying a luxury suite at an NBA or NFL game, where food and drink is typically included in the high cost of the ticket.
The cheapest ticket price on the secondary market for Thursday at the Masters is $6,657, according to StubHub. Prices for game suites at the nearby Atlanta Hawks’ State Farm Arena range from $4,000 to $6,000, and include free food and drinks.
If you were lucky enough to secure tickets to the Masters before they went on the secondary market, the cost is much cheaper. According to the official tournament site, daily grounds passes cost $140 while practice round tickets for Monday through Wednesday are $100. A weekly pass, if you’re lucky enough to secure one, costs $450.
According to a report from The Huddle, concessions only make up $8 million (5%) of yearly Masters revenue.
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The Augusta National membership fees are relatively low for a club of its reputation. The initiation fee is estimated to be roughly $40,000, according to Golf.com, although that doesn’t include the “few thousand” dollars worth of annual dues.
Despite its success, not many other sports venues have copied this Masters tactic of low concession prices for all patrons. And that likely won’t be changing anytime soon.
“I suspect because it’s moderately costly to do so,” Matheson said. “Most other venues are not in a position to be able to give up their profit-maximizing motive in the same way that a widely famous and widely wealthy club like Augusta” can.
This post was originally published on Market Watch
