On a sunny afternoon three weeks out from the Ryder Cup, the only sound that can be heard on the 1st tee at Bethpage Black is the constant drilling of the scaffolding being erected on the large grandstand behind. The bear pit is under construction and a first sighting of this massive temporary 5,000-seat structure offers a striking sign of what to expect this month.
Shortly after 7am on September 26, this is where the opening shot of the 45th Ryder Cup will be hit to a cacophony of noise. The United States team have made no secret of their wish for a fiercely partisan atmosphere that puts the frighteners on their European counterparts, and it is here where the likes of Rory McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood will get their first experience of Bethpage’s baying crowd.
“Whatever expectation they should have [about the fans], they should double it,” Bryson DeChambeau recently said, further stirring the pot for a feisty transatlantic battle. “I don’t think they’re ready for it.”
The huge stand at Bethpage overlooks the 18th green, left, and the 1st tee, right
RYDER CUP USA/X
…how it will look from overhead, with 5,000 fans packed in to create a raucous atmosphere
RYDER CUP
Due to visit on a scouting trip next week after the conclusion of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, the European team will almost certainly be led to the 1st tee by captain Luke Donald as one of the first ports of call. While nothing will fully prepare the players for the moment they walk out in front of this packed stand for their matches, an early look at the surroundings and some visualisation will undoubtedly be beneficial.
To understand the context behind the atmosphere at this Ryder Cup, the location is key. Situated on Long Island only about 35 miles east of New York City, it is easily accessible to a population of 8.5million people renowned for their passionate sports-watching. The US Open tennis tournament, for example, is by far the rowdiest of the four grand-slam events, with hollering spectators often heckling the players.
Add to this the combination of golf and a team event involving the United States, and you have the potion for an explosive three days. Six years ago there was a taste of what was to come from the boorish New York galleries when they even turned on one of their own, Brooks Koepka, willing him to mis-hit shots and let slip his lead over Dustin Johnson on the final day of the US PGA Championship in the hope of a closer contest. Koepka, to his credit, held his nerve to prevail by two shots despite a four-over-par round of 74.
Bethpage Black resembles a construction site … but the atmosphere will be frightening for Europe’s elite
BRUCE BENNETT/GETTY IMAGES
The grandstand is clearly designed to stir up the already febrile emotions. For the first time in Ryder Cup history, the structure spans both the 1st tee and the adjacent 18th green, allowing spectators the unique possibility of simultaneously watching the first groups head out in the afternoon four-balls, while the last groups conclude the morning foursomes.
Even the position of the patch of grass on the 1st tee will add to the drama. To accommodate the grandstand, the tee has been moved left and forwards, shortening the opening hole to between 340 to 380 yards depending on the pin position. It gives the likes of DeChambeau the chance to start with a bang by driving the green.
Perhaps further rousing the home support from the side of the tee will be the presence of President Trump, who has been invited by the PGA of America to attend the opening day. A self-confessed golfing nut, he is likely to waste no opportunity in adding to the theatre as the commander-in-chief.
All around the Bethpage complex, the anticipation for this Ryder Cup can be felt. The chat among those sitting with a drink in hand at the clubhouse bar is about the European picks, while merchandise is flying off the shelves in the pro shop. Ryder Cup polo shirts at $95 (about £70) are particularly popular, as are the branded pin flags at $40.
Two locals are heard referring to this as the “Super Bowl of golf”, and the extraordinary demand for tickets backs this up. Approximately 50,000 spectators are expected on each of the three days of competition, paying an astonishing face-value sum of $750 (about £550) each for daily general admission. It took only a few hours last November for all tickets to sell out.
President Trump, who was in New York at the weekend for the men’s US Open tennis final, will attend the opening day of the Ryder Cup
ANDREW SCHWARTZ / SPLASHNEWS.COM SPLASH NEWS
Understandably, many were up in arms when the prices were announced last year — as a comparison, tickets for the 2023 Ryder Cup at Marco Simone in Rome cost about $270. Shrewdly, the PGA of America justified the considerable increase by offering unlimited food and non-alcoholic beverages across the course for all ticket-holders. The subsequent market demand was emphatic.
“We view ourselves as a Tier 1 event that’s on par with a World Series [baseball], or with an NBA Finals game seven [a basketball decider],” Bryan Karns, the Ryder Cup championships director, said last year. “So when we look at pricing, we’re able to tap into data from all these different venues.
“There are people who have the Ryder Cup on their bucket list in the same way that someone would have a [New York] Yankees opening game in the World Series on their bucket list. Ultimately, we felt like that’s where we are. The demand is at an all-time high for this event, so we wanted to make sure we priced it appropriately.”
Even the volunteers are being charged. About 4,300 individuals will pay around $400 for the privilege of marshalling the course, which will at least come with a Ryder Cup uniform, drawstring bag, commemorative pin badge and food. Again, the demand exceeded supply, with about another 30,000 people on the waiting list.
Money is no object in these parts. Local homes in the Bethpage and Farmingdale area have been snapped up by groups of fans paying between $20,000 and $30,000 for a week. For those who wish to travel in style from New York City, six helicopter landing pads have been constructed on site, not only for corporate clients but also for members of the public who can book a seat from the heart of Manhattan direct to the course through the Blade mobile app for $1,250.
The irony is that Bethpage Black, renowned as one of America’s hardest courses, is accessible as a public venue. A sign in the clubhouse shows that a regular weekday 18-hole green fee for New York residents costs only $70. Normally the car park is full of golfers lining up for a non-resident tee time, such is the popularity of this course.
The welcome sign at Bethpage, with practice putting green behind
STUART FRASER
Departing the complex via the car park makes for a very different scene now. Instead of a queue of vehicles, two temporary structures are being constructed as team rooms following the specifications of Donald and his American counterpart Keegan Bradley, containing lockers, physio tables and dining facilities. For Europe in particular, it is a corner of Bethpage that will offer some welcome respite from the madness outside.