In 2023, former president Donald Trump famously said that “everybody wants to see the (British) Open Championship” held at his Turnberry golf resort in Scotland.
And while the resort’s Ailsa Course is certainly popular, ranking seventh on Golfweek’s Best’s Top 50 Classic Courses in Great Britain and Ireland, it’s also set to become the priciest.
According to a story on the BBC, the course is set to jack green fees to £1,000, or about $1,286 U.S. dollars.
From the story:
Trump Turnberry plans to introduce the green fee at specific peak times from next June.
It will apply to golfers not staying at the South Ayrshire resort’s five-star hotel and spa who want to tee-off before 1 p.m. The resort says the move is aimed at protecting tee times for its members and hotel guests.
Trump Turnberry general manager Nic Oldham told golf magazine Bunkered: “Staying in the hotel and playing the Ailsa will come in some way under £1,000, so it’s better value to do it that way.
“That’s better for the golfer, because they’re getting a full five-star experience, but it’s also better for Turnberry.
“We are unique amongst venues that have hosted The Open in that we are a complete resort and, therefore, we need to make sure all parts of our business are viable. Simply selling rounds of golf isn’t a sustainable business model.”
Turnberry has hosted The Open Championship on four different occasions, but it last hosted in 2009. Trump purchased the property five years later. When Trump was at the resort in 2023, staff waved hats that said “Made Turnberry Great Again.”